God of Mischief
by Mrs. Hiddleston Malik
Summary: Love story between a girl with an interesting ability and Loki, the god of mischief. Note: this is based off of the Marvel movie version, not the comic books or Norse myth!
1. Newcomer

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters except Allison.

**Chapter 1**

**Newcomer**

**Allison's POV**

"This is your new quarters. I cannot thank you enough for your assistance during this...altercation," says the King/All-Father of this odd place they call Asgard.

"It's no problem," I tell him. "After all, you are protecting me from anyone trying to find me and use my abilities."

He nods. "Shape shifters are rare. A telepathic shape shifter is even more so. And considering the fact that you are a child, you are very gifted. I must warn you though, a human is trying to find you. His name is Nick Fury."

At first, I'm slightly indignant. _Child?_ But I subside, knowing that the All-Father is quite old and I'm only eighteen. I knit my eyebrows together. "Who is he?"

"He is the leader of an organization he calls SHIELD. He wants you...he's recruiting some sort of army for something called the 'Avenger Initiative.' You would make a useful warrior for him and he knows that."

"How do you even know him?" I ask. "If he's a human, how did the two of you…meet?"

"He arrived at one point during the aftermath of the battle. I spoke with him and warned him to bring his affairs together so our presence would no longer be needed in Midgard."

I raise an eyebrow. "Midgard?"

"What you call Earth."

I nod. These people are weird. I mean, Midgard? Asgard? But they're keeping me safe, so I can't complain. "Right. So why are you telling me this?"

His face is completely serious as he says, "Because I request that, in return for my protection, you do not draw attention to yourself. Please do not travel anywhere outside of Asgard, not even if Loki tries to persuade you." His tone says very clearly that this is not a request. It's more of an order.

"Alright. I'll stay in Asgard. Not like I have a choice, unless I want to be a weapon for some idiotic guy with an army," I assure Odin.

"Good. I hope you enjoy it here. But won't your parents worry?"

"They're dead. I've never known them," I say shortly.

"I'm sorry. I'll leave you to your thoughts, then," he says and turns to leave.

"This Loki, who is he? He sounds like the deceiving type," I comment before he reaches the door.

He chuckles and nods. "He's my son. And he is quite the mischievous young man." Then he shuts the door behind him.

I can feel him, Fury, probing at the barriers of this realm and trying to find me and join his so-called 'Avengers.' I shake it off and decide to get to know this place better. I transform into one of my main animal forms—a nearly full-grown mare with a midnight coat and golden hooves. I toss my mane, shaking out the dust from the battle. In one swift movement, I leap out of the open window and plummet to the ground some fifty stories below.

I delight in the wind rushing past me and watch as the ground gets closer and closer. The people below me are pointing up at me and running away as I free-fall all the way until I am fifty feet away from the ground...thirty...five...

* * *

**A/N: **Well, how's that? Review please!

By the way, this story will switch between two different POVs. You'll see later!


	2. Loki, God of Mischief

**Chapter 2**

**Loki, God of Mischief**

**Allison's POV**

I land with a quiet clip-clip on my golden hooves and grin inwardly at the gaping Asgardians standing a great distance away from me.

There is one guy, however, who did not budge the entire time. I look at him, taking in his slightly pale and unconventionally handsome visage, his long, blue-black hair like that of a raven, the black leather clothes on his tall frame, and lastly his big green-blue eyes framed by dark eyebrows and eyelashes. I look into them, wondering who this is.

* * *

**Loki's POV**

The horse, with a coat as dark as night, looks straight into my eyes. I look back into the brown eyes and stroke the animal's mane.

"Well, you're a beautiful horse," I murmur. The horse whickers at me and I give it a small smile. I've always loved animals. True, I was not always so kind to them when I was a child, but I've long since stopped setting them on Thor and then playing innocent.

"Are you one of ours?" I ask it. It shakes its head, which surprises me a little. I didn't know horses could understand our language.

"Where did you come from?"

It points its muzzle towards the great empty sky peppered with purple and blue and millions of stars.

I raise my eyebrows. "Another realm? How did you come here?"

I stare into the huge brown eyes, looking for an answer. A moment later, I find myself looking into huge blue eyes the color of a Peacöck—big birds with enormous green and blue tail feathers that migrate to different realms each century—speckled with gold. I then look at my hand and realize that I am stroking wavy brown locks. I quickly withdraw my hand and look at the woman in front of me—a beautiful woman at that.

"The All-Father brought me here," she explains to me. I suddenly recognize her.

"Hang on, you're that woman from the battle today!" I exclaim.

"Yeah, hi. My name is Allison," she says.

"He brought you from Midgard? Why? So he can have another child to fawn over?" I snarl.

Those lovely eyes stare at me for a moment and she touches my shoulder. "Are you alright?"

I relax at her calming touch. "Sorry. I'm fine."

* * *

**Allison's POV**

His eyes soften a little after I put a hand on his shoulder. I explain to him why I was brought here and we walk through the Kingdom, chatting about random things. He explains to me how time runs a little differently here and that he is about nineteen years old, according to 'Midgardian time.' We hit it off and I grin inwardly, knowing I have at least one friend.

"Well, I've got to get back for supper. Do you want to join us?" he asks me.

"I don't even know who you are yet."

He looks surprised, then seems to remember he never introduced himself. "Oh, I forgot! I'm Loki Odinson."

I gape at him. "No way."

"What?"

I shake my head. "I—nothing. Well, I couldn't possibly intrude on your dinner. You're royalty and I'm...just under the All-Father's protection," I say.

"Where else would you eat if you didn't eat with us?" he asks with a smirk.

"Right," I mutter. Loki grins and offers his arm. I shake my head and transform into the black horse again, offering my back. He raises his eyebrows.

"Really? Are you comfortable with that?" he asks.

I snort and toss my head. "Alright." He mounts and I take off in the direction of the palace we all live in now. Loki bends down and whispers something in my ear as I go.

"Fly, Night Blaze," he whispers huskily as we are almost there. The tone of his voice sends shivers down my spine. I stop when we arrive and turn my head to look at him amusedly.

"You're the color of the night and you're movements are as quick as a dancing fire," he says, face coloring with embarrassment. "If you don't want me to call you that, it's fine."

I nuzzle his cheek.

"You're fine with it?" he asks, astonished. He dismounts and I transform back into a human.

"I think I prefer 'Nightblaze,' though," I say honestly.

He smiles. "May I call you that then?"

"Only when I'm in animal form," I tell him.

He nods. "So, you're a shape shifter? What other forms do you take?"

"Mainly wolf and eagle. I'll show you after dinner," I offer.

"Sure." He leads me to the dining room where I find lots of people and Loki's family already there, standing around and chatting.

"Mother, Father—" he pauses for a moment "—Thor, this is my new friend, Allison."

They all turn. Odin gives me a slight nod. Thor comes up to me and takes my hand, kissing it. I can't help but blush and Loki tenses at my side.

"I remember you. From the battle earlier today. You fight well," he says. I have to look up at him because he's so tall and I'm a petite girl. Loki is tall as well, but Thor must top him by at least half a head.

I smile politely at him. He looks like the type of guy most girls drool over, but I could care less. "Thank you, Thor," I say politely and turn to Loki. "Why are there so many people here? Do you usually have parties like this?"

Loki actually laughs this time. "No, we're just celebrating our victory today. We do this quite often, in fact. Come, sit next to me!" He pulls a chair back for me.

"Thanks," I say. I turn to the table of food and my eyes widen at all the things they eat. "That is...a lot of food."

"Well, one of our warriors tend to eat a large quantity of it." His eyes sparkle with mirth as he glances at a guy with long and curly brown hair and a beard. "Oh, Father's making another speech," he groans quietly but sits down and looks expectantly at the All-Father, who's clearing his throat.

"I shall not keep you all from your supper any longer except to say this: Let us all commemorate our victory today with this magnificent feast!" he exclaims and everyone raises their goblet and cheers. I set mine down and examine the contents. There is some sort of alcohol in there, but that's all I know.

"Loki, what's in the goblets?" I whisper to him.

"It is something we call frosted wine. These grapes only grow in the winter. Try some," he mutters back.

I look at the wine again and frown. "I'm only eighteen."

He looks at me, puzzled. "Whyever would that matter?"

"Oh. Um, back where I come from, you're only allowed to drink alcohol when you're at least twenty-one years old," I explain, but I have a sip of the frosted wine and find it tart and sweet at the same time. It's actually not bad.

"That is ridiculous! Where _do_ you come from?" asks the lady next to me. I turn to look at her and she seems to recognize me.

"Oh, you're—"

"I know, I know. I'm the shape shifter from earlier today. I get that a lot now," I comment.

"Exactly how I felt when I first became a warrior. You'll get used to it," she says, grinning. She extends a hand. "I am Lady Sif, Thor's longtime friend. You are...?"

"I'm Allison," I reply, shaking her hand.

"You Misgardians have odd names," she jokes. I can't help but laugh. Oh, the irony.

"Here, try this pheasant," she offers and doles a few pieces onto my gold plate. I thank her and try it, finding it incredibly juicy and tender. The sauce is divine, as well.

"Oh, wow, this is delicious!" I exclaim.

She chuckles. "Don't load yourself with too much of one thing. I learned long ago that you have to have a little of everything at these feasts."

I nod. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind." I can't help but eat more than I should and end up incredibly stuffed, especially with the wild boar stew. The diners start getting up and leaving the table and I decide to follow suit.

"Loki, you still want me to show you my other animal forms?" I ask.

"Sure! Let's go," he says, downing the rest of his frosted wine. We leave the palace again and we go to the gardens in the back.

* * *

**A/N:** The rest of the story will also be OOC at some points. Sif is much older than Allison and I therefore made her slightly motherly towards her.

Also, as you may have noticed, I put in something about a "Peacöck" (ehehehe :D). That was just a reference to the normal peacocks we have here on Earth so as to describe Allison's eye color.


	3. All Bullies Get Their Asses Kicked

**Chapter 3**

**All Bullies Get Their Asses Kicked**

**Loki's POV**

Allison stops and closes her blue eyes, morphing into a bird of some sort. It is enormous with extremely dangerous-looking talons. Her golden-bronze feathers catch the light of the ever-shining stars in the sky. She shoots upwards into the sky, circling the garden once before coming to land on the ground in front of me and then transforming back. I grin at her, having always wanted to be as free as a bird so I could escape Thor's shadow. I tense, but not because of the thought of my brother. I feel someone—no, at least five people—approach us.

"So what bird is that?" I ask Allison, hoping that if we seem casual enough, the people behind us will ignore us.

No such luck. They continue to carry that menacing aura as they approach us. "That's what we call a Golden Eagle. They're birds of prey we have back home. I've always admired their golden plumage and their majestic air," she explains, but I'm only half-listening.

"Well, well, look who has a girlfriend now. It's the Grease-Haired Bilgesnipe," sneers one of them.

I whirl around to face them. "It's not grease!" I yell. "Why does everyone think it's grease? I use gel to keep it from flying all over the place!"

Allison narrows her eyes at them and says to me, "I think your hair is awesome. Now, who the hell are you people?"

"Why, hello, young maiden. We are—"

"—my childhood tormentors," I finish through gritted teeth.

"—The Skarsgaard Sea Serpents." I turn around to look at them, finding myself in almost exactly the same situation as I was so many times when I was when I was younger. Still the group of big boys with bulging muscles versus the scrawny little one.

"Right..." says Allison, nodding slowly. "So you're a group of dickhead bullies."

They all look at each other, puzzled. I look at her too. "What does dickhead mean?" asks the leader.

Allison feigns a thinking pose. "Well, let's see. Your head is the empty thing sitting on your shoulders. Your dick is the dangly thing hanging in front of your balls that you use to pee. Now work out what a dickhead is," she says.

They all whisper among themselves before turning around. "You dare call us a...a...penis?" growls the leader.

"Oh, I've got worse in my arsenal, believe me." Allison twitches her eyebrow and turns back to me, about to say something, when the leader pulls out a dagger.

"Then let's see how well you fight a blade, little quim," he snarls.

Allison shakes her head and turns to face him. Thick and pure white fur forms over her porcelain skin as her body is replaced by that of a wolf. She winks at me with those uncanny blue eyes first and bounds after the scampering Sea Serpents. She growls and snarls, frightening the wits out of them. They end up cowering against the palace wall with Allsion flicking her bushy tail and deciding their fate. I can't help but collapse in laughter at their scared expressions.

"Please, spare us! We've never hurt your boyfriend over there!" one of them screams.

My heart grows cold. "_**LIAR!**_" I bellow and launch myself at them, ready to kill them all with a bolt of green energy. Allison stops me, pinning me to the ground before I can do anything to hurt them.

I whip my head around to look at her and find her eyes looking beseechingly at me. She shakes her head once and I calm down, standing up again. Allison faces the 'dickheads' again. They're already trying to slink away, but Allison bounds up to them, pounces on the closest one, then to the next one and the next one until all five boys are running away with bleeding shoulders.

She transforms back into a human and yells after them, "DON'T COME BACK OR I'LL DO WORSE!" She then turns to me and says, "And that's my third main form."

"Wow..."

She looks at me with an amused expression. "What?"

"You did that to them...for me," I say then feel my face grow red.

"Did what, stick up for you? Of course I would. I'd do much more for you," she declares and I give her a small smile.

"Thank you. And...do you really believe that my hair is not that bad?"

She laughs. "Well, if you don't want people to think you have greasy hair, I suggest you not use the gel."

I nod. "I know. Why didn't I think of that earlier?"

She snorts. "And I thought you were the smart one of the family."

That rubs me the wrong way at first, but Allison reassures me she is joking. We return to the palace, joking and chatting about the bullies' expressions. When I send her to her chambers, she looks into my eyes and says, "I'm glad I met you." Then she stands on the tips of her toes, kisses me on the cheek, and disappears into the room.


	4. Coronation

**Chapter 4**

**Coronation**

_seven years later_

**Allison's POV**

I pick out Loki's favorite green dress as he said it matches my eyes and slip the silken thing on. I sigh heavily, knowing he might not be very happy today as it's Thor's coronation. I pull on my shoes and apply some makeup. I braid a lock of my wavy brown hair and wrap it around my head like a crown. I pin some gold leaves here and there in my hair and deem myself presentable. Then there's a knock on my door. I go to answer it and find a servant there.

"The All-Father wishes to see you," she says and leaves. I find my way to the main throne room and kneel with my right fist over my heart.

"You asked to see me?"

"Please, rise, child. You are part of the family now." I cringe inwardly at the formality. I haven't gotten used to it yet.

"Right." I stand up. "So why did you request my presence?"

"You've been fighting diligently for us for a long time. You deserve to be an official warrior of Asgard, along with Lady Sif and the Warriors Three. I ask now if you desire the title."

I ponder this for a moment. "What would this entail?"

"Much honor. And you would be required to fight for us in all battles," he says.

"You requested of me long ago that I not draw too much attention to myself," I remind him.

He nods. "And you have done so well. But I believe you deserve more. Do you want the title?"

"I don't want to go into a battle thinking I have to fight. I want to go in knowing I want to. So..." Loki walks past the end of the throne room at that moment, seemingly looking for something. The coincidence of seeing him at a time when my choices would affect him seems to assure me of my decision. I look back at the All-Father, a small smile playing on my lips. "...no."

Odin stands up. He comes over to me and puts a hand on my shoulder. "I'll respect your decision. And...please, help him. He'll be fragile today."

I nod. "I will. I love him."

This is the first time I see the hint of a smile on Odin's lips. "He needs you. More than you know. You've helped all of us by coming here and being there for him. You have an extraordinary effect on him. Keep doing that." He turns and goes back to his throne.

I incline my head to him and leave the throne room. I find him drinking wine alone at the empty banquet table. "Hey," I greet quietly. He's already all decked out in his formal clothes except for his horned helmet, which is resting on the table next to his arm.

"Hello, darling. You look gorgeous today." He gives me a small smile and I kiss him, running my fingers through his now soft and clean-of-gel hair. He wraps his strong arms around my waist and I melt in his embrace, smiling against his lips.

"You know, I think the court's been giving you looks ever since you stopped wearing that hair gel. Like they think you're sexy now," I remark.

He rolls his eyes. "Like anyone could be more desirable than Thor," he says with that old bitterness and sarcasm coming into his voice.

"Hey, listen to me. There's no one more beautiful and desirable than you. You're my perfect Loki Odinson." I take his hands and give them a squeeze of reassurance.

"You don't really believe that." He downs his goblet of wine.

"Oh, but I do. Don't let your inferiority complex change you, Loki." I kiss him again, this time on his cheek, and he blushes slightly.

"Thank you," he says with a crooked grin and we just sit at the table, sipping frosted wine in silence until we hear the loud chatter of the citizens of Asgard all gathered in the throne room for the coronation of their new king. Loki puts the horned helmet on his head and offers his arm to me. I take it and we both enter the throne room through the side, as it has many entrances and exits. Though some are for what I've dubbed 'authorized personnel only.'

We weave our way through the crowd and reach the throne. He takes his spot opposite Lady Sif and the Warriors Three, a few steps below his mother as the throne sits on a platform with steps leading up to it. I stand a few steps below Loki.

We all wait for a minute and Thor appears in the doorway of the throne room. Everyone cheers thunderously and he raises his hammer Mjolnir in the air in a gesture of triumph. I glance at Loki and see him grinding his teeth. I extend a hand and touch his arm. He looks at me and nods, unclenching his jaw and attempting to smile. It just comes out as a grimace. I mouth to him, _Just try looking neutral_. He nods again and attempts to do so.

I turn back to Thor coming down the long aisle thing and he raises his hammer in Sif's direction. She rolls her eyes and says, "Oh, please." Thor grins in my direction and I attempt to look happy for him. But all I can think of is how emotionally painful this is for Loki and I just smile a fake smile and let it drop immediately when he looks away. He stops before the steps leading up to the All-Father's throne and kneels, setting Mjolnir down. He pulls his helmet off and puts that on the ground as well. He winks at his mother, who shakes her head slightly and he looks back at his father. Odin stands and slams his scepter down on the floor once. It makes a loud, echoing boom and silences the crowd.

"Thor Odinson, my heir..." Loki tenses again and I look into his eyes, shaking my head subtly to indicate my message: _Not now_. "...my first born. So long entrusted with the mighty hammer, Mjolnir, forged in the heart of a dying star. It's power has no equal! It's a weapon to destroy or as a tool to build. It is a fit companion for a king."

Here, Loki openly sighs in frustration. Luckily, the All-Father ignores him and continues on. "I have defended Asgard, and the lives of the innocent across my realms in the time of the great beginning. Do you swear to guard the nine realms?"

Thor answers with force behind his words, "I swear."

"And do you swear to preserve the peace?"

"I swear."

"Do you swear to cast aside your selfish ambition and to pledge yourself only to the good of the realms?" Now Loki is positively twitching. I reach for his hand and hold it tightly.

Thor raises a fist and yells, "I swear!"

"And on this day, I Odin, All-Father, will proclaim you—" He cuts himself off and all of us look to the far end of the throne room, having felt something go wrong. We all stand and they quickly go down to the weapons vault. Loki makes me stay.

"Stay and entertain the guests for a moment, please. I'll be back." He kisses me lightly and hurries away.

I turn to the audience, slightly nervous. "Alright, since the All-Father and his two sons must go attend to something rather important, I'll show you something. It's the something that brought me here." I close my eyes and transform first into the white wolf. The crowd collectively gasps and I reach the bottom of the stairs in one bounding leap. I snarl at the people nearest me as I land and scare the crap out of them. _Well, this is fun_. Then I transform into the midnight horse and trot around the room, subconsciously showing myself off. Then I gallop back to the front of the throne room. I get to the top of the stairs and jump again, this time transforming into the golden eagle in mid-air. The crowd screams and points at me while I circle their heads. Several times, I swoop down lower and the Asgardians duck. I shoot off back to the front in laughter—in my mind of course—and land on the back of the throne. I stay there for a moment before hearing Loki's voice in my mind.

_Nightblaze, I need to clear these people out_, he says. I look up to see him waving everyone out of the throne room. I transform into a human and yell, "Everyone, please clear the room! We are so sorry for the inconvenience. We have a…um...slight situation." They start moving towards the exit and I help herd them out. I reach Loki and raise my eyebrows in question.

"I should explain. The Frost Giants breached the weapons vault and attempted to steal the Casket of Ancient Winters—Jotunheim's power source."

I nod. "Yeah, I know of it."

"Well, they did not succeed, but Thor's violent outbursts afterwards made Father realize that he's not quite right for the throne. And now..."

"Damage control."

"Exactly," he says as we walk into the banquet hall, where Thor is flipping the table over. Quite literally. With a mighty bellow, he takes it by the edge and pushes it over. I raise an eyebrow and help Volstagg push it back into an upright position. He manages to salvage some of the dishes and I shake my head. Oh, how typical of him. I take a golden apple of Idunn—life-sustaining fruit for the Asgardians—and bite into it, watching carefully as Loki attempts to calm his brother down.

"It's unwise to be in my company now, brother. This was to be my day of triumph," says Thor as Loki sits down next to him on some steps.

"It'll come. In time. If it's any consolation, I think you're right. About the Frost Giants, about Laufey, about everything. If they found a way to penetrate Asgard's defenses once, who's to say they won't try again? Next time with an army." I narrow my eyes. Loki, where are you going with this?

"Exactly!" exclaims Thor.

"There's nothing you can do without defying father," Loki tells him carefully. Thor gives him a knowing look and stands up.

"No! No, no, no, no, no! I know that look—"

"It's the only way to ensure the safety of our borders!" he yells.

"Thor, it's madness."

Volstagg looks up from his food. "Madness? What sort of madness?"

"We're going to Jotunheim," announces Thor.

Fandral wrinkles his brow. "What? This isn't like a journey to Earth, where you summon a little lightning and thunder, the mortals worship you as a God! This is Jotunheim."

"My father fought his way into Jotunheim. Defeated their armies and took their casket! We would just be looking for answers."

Sif cuts in. "It is forbidden!"

"She's right, Thor," I say. "You just might finally persuade your father that you are not responsible enough to be King of Asgard. Don't go."

He chuckles. "My friends, have you forgotten all that we have done together? Fandral, Hogun, who led you into the most glorious battles?"

"You did," replies Hogun.

"And Volstagg, to delicacies so succulent you though you'd died and gone to Valhalla?" he continues.

The still-eating warrior says, "You did."

Thor laughs. "Yes!" Then he turns to Sif. "And who proved wrong all who scoffed at the idea that a young maiden could be one of the fiercest warriors this realm has ever known?"

She cocks her head. "I did."

"True, but I supported you, Sif." Then he turns around to look at me. "And to the newcomer, who welcomed you and helped you fit in to this new realm when all you were was lost?"

I purse my lips. "Loki did."

He responds with, "And I helped." I shake my head and he looks around at all of us. "My friends, we're going to Jotunheim."

I start to follow them, but Loki tries to stop me. "Just where do you think you're going?"

"Jotunheim."

"No. I won't let you."

I stop in my tracks. "What do you mean? Why can't I go?"

"It's dangerous."

"Yeah, like that's stopped me before," I snort. "And neither can you." I find the rest of them already downstairs and riding horses.

"Are you coming or not?" asks Thor.

"Coming." I transform into the mare.

"Wait," says Loki. "Will you at least let me...?"

I roll my eyes but allow Loki to mount and we all set off at a full gallop. After a swift order from Thor, Heimdall opens the Bifröst for us.

* * *

**A/N: **Obviously, I've taken scenes from _Thor _and put them in my story. All credit goes to Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, and Don Payne (the people who wrote _Thor_'s screenplay). Warning: this will happen again in future chapters. If you don't like, don't read!

Also, I skipped seven years because the blanks are for you to fill out! More of what happened in those seven years will come up later, though.

Review, please! I love them. They're like my golden apples of Idunn :P


	5. Jotunheim

******A/N: **Special thanks to those who added me/my story to their alerts and to those who reviewed!

* * *

**Chapter 5**

**Jotunheim**

**Allison's POV**

We arrive in Jotunheim and it is freezing. I transform into my wolf form and find that my thick white coat of fur helps immensely with the cold. They all look enviously at my cozy fur but say nothing.

We trudge our way to what looks like the living quarters of Laufey, the Frost Giant King. A booming voice greets coldy, "You have come a long way to die, Asgardians."

"I am Thor Odinson," announces Thor.

"We know who you are."

"How did your people get into Asgard?" he demands.

"The house of Odin is full of traitors," declares Laufey.

Thor's face twists in fury. "Do not dishonor my father's name with your lies!"

The face with bright orange eyes suddenly emerges from the shadows. "Your father is a murderer and a thief! And why have you come here? To make peace? You long for battle. You crave it! You're nothing but a boy trying to prove himself a man," sneers the King. I tense and glance fearfully at the blond.

"Well this _boy_ has grown tired of your mockery!" he snarls.

Loki approaches his brother and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Thor, stop and think. Look around you. We're outnumbered!" he hisses. Surely enough, there are Frost Giants closing in on every side.

"Know your place, brother!" snaps Thor, shaking off the hand.

"You know not what your actions would unleash. I do. Go, now! While I still allow it," says Laufey in that same rumbling voice.

Loki inclines his head. "We will accept your most gracious offer."

Thor looks at the evil blue face, reluctant to leave. "Come on, brother," says Loki.

But just as we all turn to return to Asgard, Laufey jeers, "Run back home, little princess."

_Uh-oh. _ Loki stops dead in his tracks. "Damn."

Thor smirks and suddenly whacks Laufey with his hammer. Laufey is thrown backwards into a wall of crumbing stone boulders. "Next?" says Thor. That brings an army of Frost Giants. They charge at us and I stay close to Loki, clawing out orange eyes and ripping blue skin. At one point, I morph into the blue-black horse and kick out at the incoming Frost Giants, effectively knocking them out.

"At least make it a challenge for me!" yells Thor and even bigger Giants start swinging at us. Smart move, I think sarcastically.

I feel as if we're screwed, which we are. Volstagg screams to my left and I stare at him. A Frost Giant has grabbed his bare forearm and now it is blistered and dark blue.

"Don't let them touch you!" he warns us. Just then, I see a Jotun grab Loki's forearm. I bound over and kick it down. I pummel my hooves into his chest until I think he's pretty much dead. In the meantime, Loki's staring down at his arm. It's turned blue, but it's not blistering. It's just...blue. His eyes widen at it and he watches as it turns back to his normal skin color. I transform back into a human and touch that part of his skin lightly.

We both look up at the same time and my eyes meet his. His green-blue eyes are full of fear and apprehension. "It's probably nothing," I say lamely. "Hurry, we've got to get back. Volstagg and Fandral are wounded."

Loki nods and turns to yell at his brother. "We must go!"

"Then_ GO_!" he bellows back and swipes at yet another Frost Giant. Then, as we're running to reach the cliff, Thor summons some lightning and pounds his hammer into the ground. It creates a wave of crumbling stone and the current surging through it knocks out all of the Frost Giants fighting him. We continue running until we reach the cliff edge where the Bifröst dropped us off.

"Heimdall, open the Bifröst!" yells Hogun. We wait but no bright rainbow light greets us. We stand there, puzzled, until we turn around and see our answer. An enormous army of Frost Giants is right behind us.

"Oh, fuck," I mutter.

I transform into Nightblaze, ready to fight again, when that rainbow stream of light shines down from the clouds above us and the All-Father appears, riding his eight-legged horse. I incline my head at it, knowing this is Odin's own steed. It glances at me.

_I don't recognize you. Are you of Asgard?_ I hear its deep voice in my mind. Apparently, not only am I telepathic, I can speak with other animals if I have taken their form. Awesome.

_No. But I fight for your cause_, I tell him.

_Where do you come from?_

_Earth. Midgard, to you._

_Interesting_. He eyes me with a sort of all-knowing look, but turns away after a moment.

I've missed Laufey and Odin's conversation, but I feel a pulling sensation and we are all transported back to Asgard.

"You, to the healing room!" thunders Odin. The warriors hurry out. I begin to leave as well, sensing a father-son lecture coming on, but Loki stops me with a hand. I trot back to his side and transform into Allison.

"Why did you bring us back?" demands Thor.

"Do you realize what you've done? What you've started?" the All-Father snarls.

"I was protecting my home!" defends Thor.

"You cannot even protect your friends! How can you hope to protect a kingdom?" counters Odin.

"There won't be a kingdom to protect if we are afraid to act! The Jotuns must learn to fear me! Just as they once feared you," he says with a hint of his hero-worship in his voice.

Odin is ordering Heimdall away as he continues to yell at his son. "That's pride and vanity talking, not leadership. You've forgotten everything I taught you! About a warrior's patience."

Thor makes a 'tch' sound and sneers, "While you wait and be patient, the nine realms laugh at us! The old ways are done! You'd stand giving speeches while Asgard falls!"

"You are a vain, greedy, cruel boy!" explodes the All-Father.

"And you are an old man and a fool!" bellows Thor, his eyes flashing with chained lightning. Not quite so literally, but he's glaring daggers at his father.

Odin pauses. I begin to think he's incredibly offended by Thor's outburst, but he's not. He is slow with his next words. "Yes, I was a fool. To think you were ready."

Loki steps towards him, eyes wide. "Father—"

Odin points a finger at him and exclaims, "Nay!" to shut him up. Loki steps back again.

"Thor Odinson, you have betrayed the express command of your King. Through your arrogance and stupidity, you have opened these peaceful realms and innocent lives to the horror and desolation of war!" He then opens the Bifröst again and steps forward to stand in front of Thor. "You are unworthy of these realms! You are unworthy of your title!" He strips Thor of his medals and then his red cape as he speaks. His son is looking horrified.

"You're unworthy!" he screams then adds, "...of the loved ones you have betrayed."

Odin walks a few steps away then abruptly turns around again. He extends his hand. "I now take from you, your power!" Mjolnir flies from Thor's grasp into his outstretched hand.

"In the name of my father!" The scale-like armor on Thor's arm falls off and disappears bit by bit.

"And his father before!" The armor on Thor's other arm is destroyed as well.

"I, Odin, All-Father, curse you out!" And with Mjolnir, he banishes Thor out of Asgard. Loki gives Odin a horrified look and stare at the bridge between the nine realms, not believing that Thor is really gone.

While Loki is staring frozen and wide-eyed at the portal, Odin is muttering to the hammer, "Whosoever holds of this hammer, if you be worthy, you possess the power of Thor." Then he throws the hammer out of Asgard as well.

I feel compelled to defend Thor. After all, he is still my friend. "All-Father! You can't—"

"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, shape shifter! I brought you here! Don't make me do something both you and I would regret," he warns with his face contorted in mingled fury and pain. I guess banishing his own son was more painful that it looked. He stalks off, leaving Loki and I alone.

"I think I'll go back alone," mumbles Loki. I kiss his cheek briefly and return to the palace. I am worried for him, but there's nothing I can do but hope he doesn't do anything rash.

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you all liked it! Again, the parts from the _Thor_ movie are all by Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, and Don Payne. I do not own the words they wrote!

Reviews, reviews! Please and thank you :D


	6. A King's Decision

**Chapter 6**

**A King's Decision**

**Allison's POV**

The next day, all I see of Loki is when he comes to meals and then he leaves before any of us are done. He's acting oddly cold and distant, but I chalk it up to the fact that he's mourning for his brother.

After he leaves dinner, I lose my appetite yet again and stand up to leave. I decide to go and talk to Sif and the warriors, who are still in the healing room. With Volstagg weakened by that Frost Giant's touch, Fandral all bandaged up because a Giant impaled him with his icy blade, they're stuck in the healing room. Sif and Hogun simply have colds, but they've been keeping the others company.

I take the platter of untouched pheasant. "Does anyone want this?" I ask the silent and mostly empty table.

The Queen looks up. "No, darling. Why?"

"I'm going to go visit Lady Sif and the Warriors Three. They haven't had food yet today and I assume Volstagg is going mad," I joke lightly and the Queen actually smiles for the first time since her son was banished. She waves me off and I go to the Healing Room, where I find Loki there too.

"We should have never let him go!" I hear Volstagg arguing.

"There was no stopping him," sighs Sif.

"I bring food," I cut in and they all reach for some, thanking me.

Fandral chews thoughtfully. "Well at least he's been banished, not dead. Which is what we'd all be if that guard hadn't told them where we'd gone."

"How did the guard even know?" questions Volstagg through a mouthful of pheasant. I see Sif grimace slightly at the sight of the food rolling around in his mouth.

Loki speaks up. "I told him." I turn to give him a questioning stare. He glances at me and looks away.

_"What?"_ gasps Fandral.

"I told him to go to Odin after we'd left. He should be flogged for taking so long. We should have never reached Jotunheim," declares Loki.

Volstagg stands and exclaims, "You told the guard?"

"I saved our lives. And Thor's. I had no idea Father would banish him for what he did," he defends.

Sif approaches him. "Loki, you must go to the All-Father and convince him to change his mind."

"And if I do, then what? I love Thor more dearly than any of you, but you know what he is. He's arrogant, he's reckless, he's dangerous! You saw how he was today. Is that what Asgard needs from its King?" He walks off. I touch his cheek lightly as he passes, trying to make him think straight, but he brushes me off and keeps walking. He's heading down to the weapons vault. I consider following him, but I decide he needs to be alone.

"...may speak for the good of Asgard, but he's always been jealous of Thor," says Sif.

Volstagg looks torn. "We should be grateful to him. He saved our lives."

"Laufey said there were traitors in the house of Odin. A master of magic could bring three Jotuns into Asgard," suggests Hogun.

"Don't be ridiculous," I snap.

"Loki has always been one for mischief, but you're talking about something else entirely," agrees Fandral.

"Don't pick on him. He's in a fragile state of mind," I tell them.

"How could you stick up for him?" says Hogun.

"How could I not? I've known him for a shorter time than you have but I know him better. I've tried understanding him. You'd do good to try and do the same," I say slightly coldly and leave the room as well. I run up to my room and fall facedown on my bed and wonder what the hell is happening to Loki. I am certainly right to do so, for I don't see him at all the next day until nighttime.

* * *

**Loki's POV**

As I am thinking about my new title and everything that it entails, I can't help but feel incomplete. Isn't this what I've always wanted? To be sitting on the throne? No, it's more than that. I want my father to feel proud of me. And only then will I want to be king. After all, if I'm a Frost Giant's son—_Laufey's_, no less—I should have to work twice as hard to prove I am worthy of the position I already have. I am formulating a plan just as Thor's friends show up. Allison is right behind them and I tense, wondering how she would take the news.

"All-Father, we must speak with you urgently—" says Sif and she cuts herself off upon seeing me.

Allison steps forward, giving me a horrified look. "Loki," she says quietly. "What've you done?"

"My friends," I greet slightly sarcastically.

"Where the hell is Odin?" demands Allison, narrowing her eyes.

I ignore her hostile tone. "Father has fallen into the Odinsleep. Mother fears he may never awaken again," I say regrettably.

Allison stares at me and says, "Odinsleep?"

"He has fallen into a sleeplike state from which he may or may not awaken," I explain.

She nods, seemingly understanding what I mean. "Then let us speak with your mother."

I shake my head. "She has refused to leave my father's bedside. You can bring your urgent matter to me." I stand, gripping my new scepter. "Your king."

They stare at me at first, then reluctantly kneel. Allison is the only one who remains standing. She shakes her head slightly to indicate her disappointment. I ignore her again. She would never love me again if she could find out exactly who my sire really is. Who would?

"My King," begins Sif, "we would ask that you end Thor's banishment."

"My first command cannot be to undo the All-Father's last. We're on the brink of war with Jotunheim. Our people need a sense of continuity in order to feel safe in these difficult times. All of us must stand together. For the good of Asgard," I add.

Sif stands to object, but Fandral stops her, saying, "Yes, of course."

"Good. You then awaiten for my word," I order.

Volstagg then says haltingly, "If I may, beg the indulgence of your majesty to perhaps reconsider—"

"We're done." I give them all a glower and they stand to leave, with Allison giving me a look that unsettles me.

"Wait, Allison."

She stops. "What, Loki?" a certain softness has entered her voice now, entirely different from the belligerent quality from before.

"Come here."

She turns back and approaches me. "What?" she asks again.

"Let's take a walk," I say vaguely. I take her by the waist and steer her in the direction of the palace exit. When we arrive outside, I begin talking. "What with the stability we so need right now, I can't afford to see a rebellion starting and not do anything about it."

"And I agree. But why are you telling me this?" she asks, furrowing her brow.

"Because..." I pull her to my side and transport us to the Bifröst. She looks around.

"Why are we—" she stops and turns to look slowly at me, her beautiful blue eyes searching for answers in mine.

"I can't keep you around if the people are to know that not even one of my strongest influences can affect my rule. Furthermore, they can be reassured that nothing can stop me from protecting my kingdom."

"Whatever happened to 'My first command cannot be to undo the All-Father's last'?"

"Ah, but you weren't the All-Father's last command. You were a seven-year-old decision. And now I shall send you back," I declare and open the Bifröst. I glance at Allison and see that her blue eyes have grown hard and unforgiving of me. Yet still, they have a beseeching look in them that's begging me to let her stay. I shove it out of my head and banish her from Asgard forever. As she is thrown into the portal, I immediately feel a pang of regret. I quell it and return to the palace. That night, as I try to sleep, I feel her blue eyes piercing through space, through the walls of the palace, and watching me. Her eyes haunt me as I sleep.

* * *

**Allison's POV**

I land on my back in hot, dusty landscape. I look around, not quite knowing where I am, then I realize this is Earth. This is Earth, where I've been missing the past seven years. I set my jaw and transform into my eagle form. I start flying, not sure where I'm going, but I just do. After a half-hour, I notice an odd white construction composed mostly of tunnels. I fly directly over it, glancing down into a large square opening in the middle. There seems to be some scientists examining something built into the ground. I dismiss it and fly on, but then I decide to take a second look. And sure enough, there it is. Thor's hammer, Mjolnir.

_What is it doing there?_ I wonder. Then I remember Odin tossing Mjolnir out of Asgard. It must've landed somewhere else besides wherever Thor did. I decide to find him. After all, _they_ can't pull it up out of the ground. It's useless. It suddenly starts pouring rain then and I am nearly blinded. I can't go anywhere while it's raining so hard so I fly down to the white thing, into one of the openings and transform into a fly. I don't want to, but I have no choice if I want to remain hidden. I zip around, not looking for particularly anything. Then I hear grunts and punching sounds in the distance. I follow it and round the corner. And I fly right into Thor's face.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry I haven't been updating very much recently, I've been busy. I love all the reviews I'm getting! More, please :D

Oh, and I have a new story called Taken. It's a One Direction story co-authored with my fellow FF author and friend! Please read and review :)


	7. SHIELD

**Chapter 7**

**S.H.I.E.L.D.**

**Allison's POV**

Thor swats at me and trudges on, barreling through the security. I follow him after I regain my balance and find him standing in front of Mjolnir. He tries several times to wrench it out of the ground...but he can't. I'm feeling incredibly sorry for him as he falls to his knees in disappointment and two guys take him by the arms. He goes without struggling and stares despairingly after his hammer.

I follow them into an entirely white room with one-sided mirrors so he can't see out of the room. They nearly shut the door on me as I quickly fly past the two guys' heads. Someone else shows up just as I am about to reveal myself to Thor and I catch myself in time, nearly tumbling out of the air.

"Who are you?" asks a man in a spotless black suit. He has an exceedingly calm voice.

Thor remains silent and simply stares ahead, looking at the man but not seeing him.

The man raises an eyebrow. "You just plowed through some of the most highly trained professionals in the world like a hay-field. And now you're not going to say anything?"

"Alright, well, if you won't tell me anything now, I assure you that we'll find out what we need to know soon enough. We're good at that." He opens his mouth to say something else, but his beeper goes off. "Don't go anywhere," he instructs and leaves the room.

As I am about to reveal myself again, someone else appears in the room to stop me again. This time, it's Loki, dressed in a normal suit and coat instead of his elaborate Asgardian outfit.

The blond finally speaks. "Loki, what are you doing here?"

"I had to see you." I notice that his hair gel is back.

"What's happened? Take me back, let me explain to Father, he'll listen the second time around—"

"Father is dead." I stare at Loki, wondering if he's lying or not.

He looks shocked. _"What?"_ he says quietly.

"The banishment of his own son, combined with the threat of yet another war with the Jotuns...it was too much for him." I narrow my eyes. _Bullshit_. Thor, you must not blame yourself for this. I know that you loved him, we all did. I tried to talk to him, but he wouldn't listen to a word I said," he explains. **_Liar!_** I want to yell at him and strangle him. But I remain hovering in the air and swear to tell Thor of his brother's lies later.

"So cruel of him to put Mjolnir within your reach, yet knowing full well that you wouldn't ever be able to lift it."_ Wow, even I have to admit that was nicely done. How subtle of him to hint that his brother will never be worthy enough._

"The burden of the throne has fallen to me now," he says with fake resignation in his voice.

_What burden? You're loving it._

"Can I come home?" asks Thor with a wistful tone in his voice.

Loki shakes his head. "We have a truce with the Jotuns. Should you ever return, the truce would be shattered, broken in pieces. Never to be fixed. And then Asgard would truly be in trouble."

It's all I can do to restrain myself. Thor sounds hopeless with his next words. "Of course, but couldn't we...somehow...find a way to—"

"Your mother herself has prohibited your return. Perhaps when this dreadful war is done and over with...but for now, I am sorry," he says, managing to look like he means it. I really consider transforming back but he would definitely find a way to keep me and the truth away from Thor then. And I do want to help him.

He shakes his head. "No, I'm sorry. I convinced you all to go to Jotunheim. Thank you...thank you for coming," he replies, looking as if he's about to cry.

"Farewell." Loki disappears.

Thor pauses before saying, "Goodbye." I can't take it anymore. I transform back into my human form and face Thor.

"Allison?" he yelps.

"Look, Loki's lying. Odin is alive, and your mother certainly did not forbid your return, goddammit!" I exclaim.

His face grows stormy. "That little—so how did you get here? With Loki as king, don't you need his permission to travel between realms?"

"Oh, I know. He banished me here. Said I threatened his rule, or some crap like that. Either way, I'm not going back," I tell him.

_"What?_ That's insane! I'll get us both back, alright? I promise."

I smile sadly. "Thanks, but I think I'll stay here. But if you ever need me, don't hesitate to find me—"

Someone opens the door again and I quickly take the appearance of the man in the black suit. It's just my luck that the person coming in _is_ the same guy.

His eyes widen. "What the—"

I act fast. "First tell me: you're an agent of SHIELD, correct?" I demand.

"Y-yeah..."

"Which one?"

"Agent Phil Coulson."

"Good." I transform back to my normal appearance. He gapes and then recovers quickly. He whips out a cell phone and types in a number.

"Wait," I say, stopping him. "Only if you let him go. And leave him and everything that has to do with him alone. Got it?"

He reluctantly nods and continues dialing the number. "Sir, we found her. Yes, she's here with me now. Yessir, I will bring her over immediately. M-hm. Okay." He shuts his phone. "You come with me," he says, looking at me.

"And my friend?" I ask.

"He can go."

"With Jane's equipment," he suddenly says.

Coulson turns around. "Excuse me?"

"I'm going to need Jane Foster's equipment back," he repeats.

Coulson looks at me. I nod and say, "If you want my services, you're going to need to give him what he wants."

He sighs before conceding. "Fine." He leaves the room and we follow.

"Who's Jane?" I whisper to Thor.

"A...friend."

I look at Thor and see that he's blushing. I snigger but say nothing else. When we reach the exit and we have to go our separate ways, I give him a hug. He hugs me back tightly, nearly crushing my bones.

"I'll miss you and your wit," he says and I laugh.

"And I'll miss you, for your everything. Thanks for being my friend those past seven years, Thor. You sure you won't need my help to get you back?"

"I'll do fine. Thank you."

I smile and wave goodbye as I get into the car with the agent. "So, where are we headed?" I ask him.

"You'll see," he says. I sigh at the mysteriousness of it all and fall into a tired stupor until the car jerks to a stop.

"We're here," Coulson announces and helps me out. We are, once again, in the middle of nowhere. Except now there's a plane waiting for us. We board it and Coulson explains what's going on.

"...and Director Fury is waiting for us right now out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. We have what we call a Helicarrier. It's an aircraft carrier slash huge-ass plane. We're nearly there, by the way. Brace yourself, it hurts landing."

"What do you m—" the plane stops abruptly and I feel like my insides are several feet behind me. As I regain feeling in my body, I get off the plane and see a tall black man with an eye patch and decked out in a complicated-looking black leather outfit complete with cape. He kind of resembles what an emo Asgardian would look like.

"Miss Nicholls. I'm Director Nick Fury." He has a commanding voice that tells me he's not one to mess with.

"Right," I say. "So, what's the deal? What do you want me to do?"

"You'd be extremely helpful in helping us extricate information. You would be our spy, like Agent Romanoff is. But you'd be taking the appearance of other people to do that. And you know Loki very well, as I've heard," he says.

"Yeah...I do." I bite the inside of my lower lip, trying not to remember everything I've done for and with Loki.

"Good. Come with me, Agent Nicholls," he beckons and I follow him down into the Helicarrier.

It's extremely high-tech, with futuristic gadgets come to life everywhere. I gape at everything we pass by as he shows me to a room. I go inside and find a rather plain bedroom with simple furniture. There is a desk pushed against the opposite wall with a matching chair. There is also a chest of drawers, a bed, lamp, nightstand, etc. It basically looks like a hotel room, except everything is either wood or metal or glass in only white and grey colors, but it looks cozy enough. The wall separating my room from the hallway is made of thick glass with blinds for privacy. I even have my own private bathroom and shower. Those walls are not transparent, luckily enough.

"Since you have no place to live, you'll stay here, on the Helicarrier. It's fun. It'll be like your average twenty-five-year-old's job," he says. "Get up, get ready, and get to work."

"I'm not even sure if I'm still legally alive anymore," I tell him. "I've been gone seven years."

"I know. But you won't have to worry about that. You're on our team now, correct?" he asks.

I pause before turning around and giving him a nod. "Of course."

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, if you haven't noticed yet, I have made this story a crossover FF between the movies _Thor_ and _The Avengers. _The _Thor_ part of the story has now ended and now we move on to Part Two (which takes place a year later)!

Sorry if you all were expecting Allison to stick around and help Thor. I'm the author :D

Reviews, pretty please! I love them all and I thank all my reviewers, favorites, and followers!


	8. The Life of a SHIELD Agent

**Chapter 8**

**The Life of a SHIELD Agent**

**Allison's POV**

_KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK._

I groan and roll over, ignoring it.

_KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK._

I crack one eye open. "Okay, fine. I'm up." I get out of bed, sighing as I feel my still-tired body object.

_KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK._

"I'm up!" I say louder.

_**KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK.**_

"DUDE." I wrench open my bedroom door. "I'M UP."

"Good," says the guy whose job is literally to go around each morning and give out wake-up calls. I hate his guts, but he keeps us all on schedule. So I refrain from locking my fingers around his neck each time wakes me up.

I shut the door with some force and get ready for the day, rapidly brushing my teeth and washing my face. I pull on the skintight leather suit all female SHIELD agents wear except mine and Agent Romanoff's are in black, not blue. Then on I pull on a pair of fingerless gloves to protect my knuckles when I start punching people. The belt around my waist has a black and gold flame motif with frosted tips to symbolize my three main animal forms. I brush my hair and then adjust my earpiece, sighing. I am the only one required to keep it on when I sleep because they still don't trust me and my telecommunication abilities. Fury seems to think I might take over. Like I want to.

I find my way to the cafeteria, getting myself another ration of tasteless scrambled eggs, mysterious ham slices, and disgusting coffee. I get two pieces of toast and make a sandwich. I've barely finished my first swallow when I receive my first orders of the day.

"Agent Nicholls. Get to the main control room. Now," Fury says into my earpiece.

"I got up ten minutes ago."

"Then finish your breakfast in the next two." He cuts the contact and I sigh, wolfing down my food. I swipe at my lips with a napkin and hurry out of the cafeteria with everyone looking pitifully at me as usual. I transform into a Golden Eagle and fly up to the main control room, where I find Steve Rogers, Bruce Banner, and Agent Romanoff. I transform back and remain calm at meeting the superheroes, giving them a nod.

"Hi, I'm Allison Nicholls. Pleasure meeting you all," I greet with a small smile.

"So you're the shape shifter," says Rogers as he passes a ten dollar bill to Director Fury.

I grin at him. "The one and only. It's actually really fun."

"Doctor Banner," says Fury, cutting off our conversation. He shakes Bruce Banner's hand.

"Director Fury. How long am I staying here?"

"You that eager to leave?" I ask with an arched eyebrow.

"I'd rather not stay. Something might happen because I'm here." He turns back to Fury for an answer.

"As soon as we find and retrieve the Tesseract, you're free to go."

"Right. So what's the situation now?"

Fury gestures for Agent Coulson to explain. "We're sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera on the planet. Cell phones, laptops. If it's connected to a satellite, it's eyes and ears for us."

"That's going to take a while. What if they're on the move?" Rogers points out.

"I can try and find Loki," I offer.

Everybody turns to look at me. "How?" asks Banner.

"I am a telepath," I explain.

"But then won't he figure out what we're doing and then…change his plans?" says the Captain.

"At least we'll have a lead. And if that doesn't work, I can force him," I say with a grim look.

"Alright. Try that and report back to me," says Fury. I nod and get back to my room because it's quieter and I need to concentrate. I sit down on the edge of my bed and close my eyes. I project my mind to Loki's, using as much force as I can to catch him off his guard. I am ecstatic when I breach his mental barriers. I scan quickly for the information I need and take it. For a last second, I check to see if he's noticed what I've done. But I'm in incredible luck for he's asleep. Grinning, I put a finger on my earpiece.

"Got it," I say and wait for a reply.

"Agent Nicholls, any news?" says Dr. Banner.

"Yes. I couldn't get anything on his current location. That was stored in a strictly guarded part of his mind. But Loki's planning on breaking into a museum in Stuttgart, Germany because he needs something called iridium. Apparently, there is a container of it stored in the building. We can intercept him there," I say all very quickly.

Fury speaks next. "Good. Thank you, Agent Nicholls. Please report to the flight deck in five. We'll be leaving for Germany." I notice his sudden politeness, a huge difference from this morning. I suppose it's because I just gave him some highly valuable information.

"Yes, sir." I stand and go pee before leaving for Europe.

* * *

**A/N: **The line where Agent Coulson says, "We're sweeping every...it's eyes and ears for us" is taken from the movie _The Avengers._ All credit goes to Joss Whedon.

How was that? This one's a little short, but don't worry. The next one will be longer.

The more reviews I get, the sooner you get to see Loki again!


	9. Stuttgart Reunion

**Chapter 9**

**Stuttgart Reunion**

**Allison's POV**

I spend the entire ride to Stuttgart in silence. I have no idea how I would react to seeing my ex-boyfriend again. He's been busy all year, doing things I can't believe the old Loki would have done. I am yanked out of my stupor by Natasha's voice, telling me something.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I said, Fury's ordered us to drop you off on that horse rider statue over there. So you can keep an eye on the situation down there and interfere if needed. If you show yourself, the Captain will come in as well. Then we'll be along in a minute if you both need help. Got it?"

"Got it." Natasha lowers a ramp and I transform into the eagle and fly down onto the statue. I land on the rider's outstretched arm and wait.

Suddenly, people start screaming and running out from some sort of museum. And, as expected, Loki comes out, all decked out in his armor and horned helmet. I immediately tense at the sight of him. I send a message to Agent Romanoff, remaining silent on the outside so as to avoid alerting Loki to my presence.

_Natasha, are you seeing this?_

"I am," she answers through the earpiece.

_Should I step in? Do something?_

"Not yet. Wait."

"Kneel before me," orders Loki. The Germans ignore him as they continue running away from him. I swallow as he uses his powers of illusion to shepherd the people together, projecting body doubles around the crowd. "I said…KNEEL!" he bellows and the Germans go down to their knees slowly. I curl my lips in a sneer at his arrogance.

_Aren't we going to do something yet? _I ask again. Natasha answers with a negative.

The god smirks. "Is not this simpler? Is this not your natural state?" He starts moving forward through the kneeling Germans. "It's the unspoken truth of humanity, that you _crave_ subjugation. The bright lure of freedom diminishes your life's joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity. You were made to be ruled. In the end, you will always kneel," he declares.

An old man stands and my eyes widen, thinking he's going to dare oppose this statement to his face. "Not to men like you."

He grins in reply. "There are no men like me." _Well, that's true_, I think.

"There are always men like you," he counters.

Loki spreads his arms. "Look to your elder, people. Let him be an example," he says chillingly. He raises his spear-like weapon with the glowing blue thing in the middle of the blade and it starts pulsating. I fly fast towards him in a blurred bronze streak with an angry screech, knocking him down just as he blasts something blue out of the spear. The beam veers off and dissolves into the night sky.

I perch on his chest and being a magical animal, I am bigger than the average Golden Eagle so I manage to weigh him down for a while. He looks into my bright amber eyes and seems to recognize me. I say to Natasha, _Now may be a good time to send help._

The jet appears a moment later and Steve jumps out. Loki uses this distraction to throw me off. I transform back into Allison as I have faster reflexes as a human and barely manage to not land on my back. Steve tosses his shield at Loki but it is knocked aside easily. But Steve is not a useless monkey tossing around a shield and aims a couple punches and kicks at him. He keeps being struck down and knocked around and I hear Natasha mutter into my earpiece, "The guy's all over the place." Then her voice orders through the PA, "Loki, drop the weapon and stand down." As she speaks, a machine gun lowers itself from the belly.

Loki looks up at her, grins maniacally and shoots another blue beam of energy at Steve, who's just managed to retrieve his shield and block it in time. Anger boils up in me and I grab the horns of Loki's helmet. It's actually rather snug on his head so when he spins around to face me, I am tossed to the side. I stand up and he smacks me in the face with his spear thing at the same time. It throws me backwards into the wall of the museum and my head hits it with such a force that it actually bounces. I slide down the wall a little and breathe raggedly through the pain. My unfocused vision catches Loki's face right in front of mine with one arm next to my head and my heart starts beating quicker as I feel his warm breath on my face. He is about to say something when he suddenly slumps against me with his face mushed into the wall next to my head. He lifts his head and turns around before I black out from the agony.

* * *

**Loki's POV**

A man in a red and gold suit of armor calls out, "Make your move, Reindeer Games."

_Damn_, I think. I reluctantly lift my hands in surrender and make my own armor disappear.

"Good move." He lowers his hands, which have some sort of device attached that blasted me into the wall just now.

The man who had attacked me earlier stands next to him. "Mister Stark," he greets.

"Captain." They come over and take me by the arms, forcing metal circles around my wrists. They are chained together and prevent me from doing much with my hands. They push me into the aircraft, which has landed in the now-empty square.

"Wait a sec. What about the chick Loki was drooling over when I blasted him?" The man called Mister Stark jerks a thumb over at Allison.

"That's Agent Allison Nicholls," explains the man in blue.

"Agent? What is she doing for you now?" I smirk.

They ignore me and Mister Stark finally shows his face, taking off his mask. He peers at Allison. "_That's_ the hot brunette? The one with the blue eyes?" I feel a slight sting of jealousy at his comments.

The Captain rolls his eyes. "The shape shifter. Yes."

"Now how did someone like Loki here get someone like her?"

I clench my jaw.

"For one thing, I'm sure he wasn't making rude comments day in and day out," points out the Captain.

Mister Stark ignores that. "Well, she's bloodied up. I'll go get her," he says and hurries out of the aircraft.

The Captain stops him and shakes his head. "I'll go." As he leaves, he mutters, "I trust you just about as far as you can throw me."

He carefully puts her arm around his shoulders and picks her up, one arm tucked under her shoulders and the other supporting her legs. He walks over and sets her down on the seat across from mine. The sight of her unconscious and the large cut on her upper cheek makes me feel slightly guilty, but I shake it off. I am a god, and gods do not weep over mortals when they are achieving something as important as I am now.

A few minutes after we take off, there are a few flashes of lightning and rolls of thunder that shake the aircraft. I look up in apprehension at the roof and the Captain glances at me. "What's the matter, scared of a little lightning?"

"I'm not overly fond of what follows," I explain. Surely enough, my dear brother smashes through the roof a moment later. He grabs me by the collar and flies out of the hole, bringing us to some stone outcrop. He drops me onto the cliff and I land on my back, winded. As I regain my breath, Thor stands over me.

"Where is the Tesseract?" he demands.

I smirk. "Ah, I've missed you too, brother."

"Do I look to be in a gaming mood?" he snarls.

"Well then tell me. How much dark energy did the All-Father have to muster to conjure you here? Your precious Earth," I sneer, sitting up.

My brother drops Mjolnir and grabs my collar, picking me up off the ground. "I thought you dead." _Genius, brother. Didn't you all? _I think.

"Did you mourn?" I hold my breath as he answers.

"We all did. Our father—"

I hold up a finger, cutting him off. "_Your_ father." Thor lets go of me, looking as if he's in pain. "He did tell you my true parentage, did he not?"

"But what does that matter? You're my brother and I love you," he declares roughly.

I feel my gut wrench with his words then regain my composure. "Ah, Thor. Always the forgiving one."

"Loki, come home with me." Thor's words are laced with a gentle tone that irritates me. _I am a god and a king! __**No one**__ pities me, ever._

"You need the Tesseract to bring me home, but I've sent it off, I know not where." This time I am actually being sincere.

Of course, Thor does not believe me. He summons his hammer and points it in my face. "You listen well, brother. I—" Mister Stark has shown up and slammed into my brother, throwing them off the cliff and onto the forest floor below. For a moment, they exchange words, then Thor tosses his hammer at Mister Stark's retreating back. They battle it out for a moment and I watch in amusement when the Captain joins them. He says something to Thor which provokes him again and he jumps at him, raising Mjolnir to strike. The Captain brings up his shield to protect him. At first, I'm thinking the shield will crumple, but I remember when it blocked the beams of energy I threw at him. A hammer that can break through anything versus an indestructible shield results in a bright flash and a slight explosion that knocks all of us down. They all pick themselves off the ground and come back for me. I let them take me back into the aircraft, knowing perfectly well I can twist this situation to suit my own ends.

* * *

**A/N: **Ta-da! Loki's back! He calls Tony Stark "Mister Stark" because he does not realize what it means, being an Asgardian. :D

How did you all like this? Please review, I really appreciate them and would love to see more.

All credit for the _Avengers_ quotes go to Joss Whedon, the brilliant man.


	10. Big, Bad, and Caged

**Chapter 10**

**Big, Bad, and Caged**

**Allison's POV**

When I wake up again, I'm feeling rather disoriented and groggy but my head is no longer throbbing. I look around to see that I'm in some sort of infirmary. A nurse approaches me as soon as she sees me awake.

"Director Fury asked me to tell you to report to the main control room as soon as you're awake," she says gently.

I groan but get up. "Is it okay if you don't tell him I'm going to take a shower?" I ask her.

She smiles. "Of course."

"Thanks." I swing my legs off the bed and stealthily get back to my bedroom. I grab some clothes and take a shower, washing my hair to drown my thoughts of Loki. _Did we succeed? Or did he get away again?_ I come back out and pull on some normal clothes. I dress in a white v-neck t-shirt and a full deep green skirt that stops just above my knees. They are some of the few articles of clothing I bought on that one shopping trip I was allowed. Fury had assigned me a bodyguard to ensure I wouldn't run away, but at least it was Natasha and not some creepy muscular dude who would've eyed my every move. Natasha even helped me pick out some clothes, so that was a plus.

As I dry and brush my wavy hair, I notice a mostly-healed cut on my cheekbone. _That must have been from his spear_, I think. I ignore it, pulling on a pair of combat boots, and go report to Fury as he had asked. When I enter the room, I am surprised to see that most of the Avengers are there, including a familiar face.

"Thor!" I exclaim happily. He looks up and grins, coming over to bring me into a bone-crushing hug.

"I've missed you, you little shape shifter," he says, picking me up and spinning me around.

I laugh and kiss him on the cheek. "Me too! Why are you here?" I ask after he's set me down.

"We've captured Loki. He's in his cage right now, prowling about and asking for you," says Fury, answering my question.

I raise my eyebrows. "You—you've locked him in a _cage?_"

"It's not what you think, a stone prison with bars," says Natasha. "It's a glass cell."

"And...he's asking for me?" I repeat.

Fury nods. "Yes. He would like to speak with you."

"Well, am I going to?" I ask.

Thor answers quickly, "You should. We might get more information out of him. He wouldn't divulge the whereabouts of the Tesseract."

I frown. "Why?"

"We were hoping you could talk to him and find out. You do know him well."

I—fine. But someone please stand by and get me out if he tries anything, okay?" I say.

"Of course," answers Fury and he takes me to see the big bad cat.

* * *

After going down a couple flights of stairs and rounding endless corners, Fury steers me into a large room with a stout glass cylinder in the middle. I find Loki inside, wearing only his everyday outfit instead of the horns and armor I last saw him in. He turns to look at me and a madman's grin spreads across his face, making him look nothing like the man I used to know. I swallow nervously as Fury opens the door and lightly pushes me in. The door shuts behind me and I am faced with Loki, alone.

"I see you've dressed yourself up to see me. I'm flattered," he begins.

"I haven't," I tell him.

"Ah, but you_ are _wearing my favorite color, aren't you? And _that_ is quite revealing." His eyes linger on my chest and I cross my arms.

My eyes flicker once towards the surveillance camera. "I notice you've started wearing hair gel again," I comment, trying to steer the conversation away from topics that are uncomfortable to listen to, on the part of the Avengers.

"You're trying to change the subject."

"And you're trying to unhinge me," I counter.

"You lost your virginity to me long ago, do you not remember? Or would doing so unhinge you?" he asks with a devious look in his eyes.

I throw him a pained look. "Don't speak of it. You never loved me. I lost my virginity to someone I loved, but who did not love me back. Of course that would bring back upsetting memories."

His smile falters. "Ah, but I did love you," he says quietly, walking a few steps closer to me.

"Not enough to keep me around, was it?" I cock my head.

The smile slides completely off of his face. "I've always regretted that."

"Oh, have you? Then why did you never come back for me?" I demand to know.

"I so wanted to. I regretted it as soon as I realized what I had done. But the Asgardians would never have listened to a King who was inconsistent with his actions."

"How _did_ your plans of ruling the world pan out?" I ask him.

Loki's face twists and he snarls, "I may not have done so well with Asgard, but I am very far along with _your_ precious home."

I pause for a moment. "How is that going to work?"

He smirks. "I have an army."

I raise an eyebrow. "Of what?"

His green-blue eyes narrow. "Why should I tell you that?"

"Well, if you only asked me here to talk about sex and ruling the world..." I turn to the door.

Loki's voice stops me. "I requested your presence because I wanted something from you."

I turn back to face him. "Which is...what?"

The maniacal grin returns to his face and he says with the velvety tone back in his voice, "A kiss."

I raise my eyebrow. "A kiss."

"You heard correctly," he says.

"I—why?"

"Do you not want to?"

I ignore that. "Why do you want to kiss me?" I press.

"I will give you any piece of information you want to know if you give me one kiss," he bargains suddenly.

I stare at him. "You're lying, aren't you?" But I know he's not. I can always tell when anyone speaking to me is lying and this time is no different.

"I swear I will," he promises. I look at him. Why would he want to kiss me in exchange for basically surrendering?

"What's the catch?" I ask him.

He shakes his head. "No catch."

"Swear on your life you will tell me anything I want to know," I order. He does so. _Well, what's the harm in it?_ I think. I move towards him until we're inches from each other.

"You've grown," I mutter as I realize he's at least a head and a half taller than me now.

He smirks. "So have you." He brings me closer to him with one strong hand around my waist and my breath hitches. He crushes his lips to mine and his deft hands move up to cup my face. There is a certain salty taste to the kiss until I realize I'm crying. I try to stop the tears, but he makes it worse when he pulls me with him to fall on his cold metal bed, reminding me of the night I lost my virginity to the god of mischief and lies. I begin to pull away, but he plants his hands down on the bed on either side of me—effectively barring me in—and kisses me harder, his tongue beginning the familiar exploration around my lips and demanding for entrance. His familiar scent intoxicates me and I wrap my arms around his neck. I don't realize what he's doing until he's almost succeeding. I suddenly feel his mind probing around in the deep dark corners of my own, trying to seize control of it. _He's trying to subjugate me. That's why he wanted to kiss me._

I abruptly break away and let go of him, scrambling out from underneath him. I feel rather hazy and dizzy because of his attempt to use mind control right after I've recovered from a slight concussion. I bring up a fist and slug him with as much strength as I can muster. His head snaps back and he lets out an involuntary yelp.

I snarl at him, "I knew I couldn't ever trust you again. You've given me so many reasons not to. I don't understand how I still loved you after all that. But now..." I speak into my earpiece. "Come get me."

"I'm sorry?" says Loki, surreptitiously rubbing his jaw where I hit him.

I shoot him a look. "Not you, asshat."

"You still want that information?" he asks me before Rogers comes inside the cell.

"I'll have to consider my question," I reply shortly and let Steve put a hand on my shoulder, steering me out of there. I turn to look at him again before the metal doors clang shut and find him looking rather wistfully after me. I clench my jaw and continue walking briskly.

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the long wait, guys! Thanks for being so patient!

Review, please! I need some suggestions as to how I should continue this story. Let them flow in so I can write more and update faster!


	11. The Persistence of Memory

**Warning: this chapter contains some sexual content. Just a small bit. Skip over the hunk of italicized text if you do not wish to read such things.**

* * *

**Chapter 11**

**The Persistence of Memory**

**Allison's POV**

The rest of them are re-watching the video of me talking to and kissing Loki when I get back. We all watch as I open my eyes in horror and push him off of me, my face contorting in fury. Stark cheers when I punch Loki. I catch myself feeling slightly satisfactory at it and shake it off, feeling guilty.

"Why did you strike my brother?" asks Thor. Stark high-fives me and the Asgardian shoots him a look.

"He tried to use his mind powers to subjugate me and turn me into another one of his SHIELD minions," I say, referencing Barton and Selvig.

Fury raises an eyebrow. "So it _is_ possible."

I clench my teeth. "I've told you before that I don't give a crap about taking over your goddamn Strategic Homeland whatever you call yourselves. What part of that did you not understand?" I growl at Fury.

"You're not thinking straight. Calm down, before he locks you in an uncomfortable plastic cell for disrespecting him. He _is_ our authority figure now, after all," mutters Steve.

I turn my head slightly to look at him. "I know he won't. He knows I could do worse to him if I wanted," I tell him with satisfaction in my voice. And I'm right, for the director simply looks at me like he wants to shoot me and walks off.

"So what's our next move?" asks Steve.

"Agent Nicholls' next move would be to get some rest," interjects a cool female voice in my ear. I jump.

"Uh...who's this?" I ask my earpiece.

"Your nurse."

I roll my eyes heavenward. "How'd you get in my earpiece too?"

"Director Fury authorized it."

I bristle. "And now I've got a babysitter to look after me 24/7. Wonderful," I growl.

"Please, listen to me. You're not entirely well. And your mental tussle with the god hasn't really helped. If they need you, they can call," she urges. Well, at least she's being nice.

I clench my jaw and go to my room, calling over my shoulder, "If you need me, my earpiece will be in. As usual!" in a falsely cheery voice.

As I reach my room, a SHIELD worker jogs over to me. He offers me a folded piece of paper. "Here. I was asked to give this to Agent Nicholls."

I take it, puzzled. "By whom?"

He shakes his head. "I can't say, sorry. Just take a look at it." Then he turns on his heel and walks away.

I push my door open absentmindedly as I stare at it for a moment before unfolding it, sitting down on the edge of my bed. My heart drops to my stomach as I recognize the thin, spidery handwriting.

_I'm sorry._

I crush it in my fist, clenching my teeth. I stomp over to the trash can next to my desk and slam the note in, feeling utterly disgusted at the raven-haired god. I fall on my bed and lay there for a moment, feeling thoroughly annoyed at both SHIELD and Loki. I look down at my clothes and feel tainted wearing the green skirt so I change into the fitted black leather suit again and then leave my room. I sneak down to the gym where I've gone through the same agonizing and vigorous training Agent Romanoff went through except compacted into five weeks.

The lights are already on and I see my trainer, a well-built man in his fifties, rearranging the equipment. "Trainer Rothenberg."

He turns and sees me standing in the doorway. "Allison Nicholls. You were the only student of mine who had to learn so many different fighting styles and combat skills in such a short amount of time. Most newcomers needed months. You, however, took half a year's worth of intense training and managed to pack it all into the space of five short goddammned weeks. I have to say, you did better than I thought you would." He gives me a smile.

I return it, admitting, "It was grueling."

He snorts. "I'll say." He picks up a punching bag and carries it off to the side. "So why are you down here? Had enough of Director Fury yet?"

I shrug. "I thought I could let off some steam with you. There are…several things on my mind and I'd like something to take my mind off of them." As I'm saying this, the image of the note with the two words on it swims around in my vision. I shake my head to clear it.

"Yeah?" Trainer Rothenberg grins. "Well then let's go." We move to the center of the room and he suddenly aims a punch at my face. I bring an arm up to block it and use my other arm and to flip him around onto his back. He hits the ground with a grunt and gets up quickly, sweeping his leg in a wide circle. I jump up high and grab his shoulders just as he stands up. I twist my body around his and as soon as my feet touch the ground, I pull and flip him again. This time he lands on his feet and brings one up in a high kick, hitting me square in the chest as I fail to dodge it. I grab the foot and twist not nearly as hard as I normally would for that would break his ankle. His momentum causes him to lose balance and he twists, rolling on the ground and standing up again.

"Alright, truce. I just finished a session with one of my other students. I'm a little tired." He brings his hands up in mock-surrender.

I push my hair out of my face, grinning. "Senility setting in, old man?"

He snorts. "Hardly. Your hand-to-hand combat is great, by the way. You should go use the targets or punching bags if you want to continue letting off steam. I'm off to shower."

"Bye, Trainer!" I call after him. I turn to the punching bags lined up against the wall. I take one and hook it up. I start hitting it as I usually do and pretend I'm knocking out some enemy soldiers. My mind strays to Loki's kiss and memories start flashing by. I am brought back to the time when we first had sex.

_We were both a little drunk after a few too many drinks at his birthday party. We ran up to his room, giggling a little, and he kissed me. He put his hands in my hair and we kissed for a while before he started to pull down the straps of my dress._

_"Loki," I murmured._

_"What?" he asked, pulling away and looking into my eyes._

_"Are we going to do this?"_

_"I would hope so," he joked. "I brought contraceptives."_

_I blushed then. "It's just...I have never done this before."_

_"Well, since at dinner you said you didn't think your present was big enough, maybe you have something else for me?" he said with a sultry tone._

_"My virginity would be sufficient," I agreed and kissed him again. "After all, you do what you want." He laughed and pulled off my dress entirely. I took off his formal wear as well and then we were both in our underwear._

_I covered my chest, feeling embarrassed. Loki took my arms away and lightly traced my cheek, telling me, "Don't. You are stunningly beautiful. You don't have to hide." He fingered the strap of my bra._

_"You really think so?" I asked him._

_"Darling, of course I do." Once again, his mouth met mine. In the next moment, we were both fully nude and he ran his splayed hands down my back, sending shivers down my spine. His hands reached my butt and he pulled me to him. Desire ran through me as we fell atop the bed, knowing it was going to be a night neither of us would ever forget. Not in a million years._

Tears start making their way down my cheeks at that memory. Loki told me that remembering that night would unhinge me. He was right. I am pummeling the bag with such force behind my punches that it starts swinging wildly on its chain. I slow down and slump against the bag, panting and crying at the same time. My tears are now mingling with the light sheen of sweat on my face. I quickly wipe my face and neck with a towel, compose myself, and raise my fists up again to continue punching the bag.

Suddenly, the ship jolts and I lose my balance, my body hitting the ground. I scramble up and run up to the lab where I know everyone else is to find a gaping hole next to one of our four major engines. I find Steve fighting some guys and I help him, knocking them out with a couple punches, as if they were just another punching bag. I straighten and face him.

"Steve, what happened?" I ask.

"The enemy blasted a hole and damaged our engine. Stark's fixing it now," he explains quickly while beating up another guy who's snuck up on us.

I wrinkle my brow. "The enemy?"

"Loki's men."

I nod. "Right, Loki's men—holy crap, _Loki_!" I exclaim and sprint back in the direction of Loki's glass cell. As I go down a flight of stairs, a huge green something blocks my way. I skid to a stop as my brain registers the fact that the Hulk is going to kill me. My body morphs into the white wolf and I leap at him, jumping off his chest and over the banister of the stairs. I run fast in the opposite direction and put as much distance between me and the Hulk as I can. I reach Loki's cell and transform back into a human just in time to see Loki slam his hand down on the control panel. A hole opens in the middle of the room, dropping the glass cell through it with Thor inside.

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, I need your help. Should Loki have a change of heart next chapter or after a few more chapters? Tell me in a review so I can write the next chapter!

To C'estLaMort: Thank you so much! Those kinds of reviews mean a lot to me :D (He/she told me I was a wonderful writer. Everyone please follow this example.)


	12. Hero

**Chapter 12**

**Genius, Billionaire, Playboy, Philanthropist, Hero**

**Allison's POV**

I snarl and jump Loki, throwing him to the ground. My four sets of claws penetrate his clothes and dig into his skin underneath, eliciting a slight strangled yelping sound from his throat. He gives a bit of a grunt as he hits the ground and I morph back into my human form.

"Ah, Allison, why are always where you should not be? Foiling my plans every step of the way," he comments like a scolding schoolteacher.

I sneer, "Only to you I am where I shouldn't be. From where I'm standing, I'm doing exactly what I should be."

"Not this time anymore, you won't," he says and suddenly reaches up to touch the sides of my head. I feel his mind plunge into mine and delve into the deepest, darkest corners. He latches onto one memory, shoved far back into my mind, and pulls it to the front of my brain. I try to resist his mental intrusion, but his telepathic abilities are stronger yet than mine. He makes me relive it, crumbling my mental shields like they are dust with that particular memory.

_After dinner, the family of three took a leisurely walk about the neighborhood. A nine month old baby with tufts of brown hair waved her fists at her parents, gurgling happily from her stroller. They smiled down at their child, not knowing that would be the last moment before God plucked them from the world forever._

_Suddenly, someone grabbed the brunette woman of whom her daughter was the spitting image and held a gun to her head, dragging her backwards. The tall man with sandy hair turned from his daughter and saw the two men in ski masks stealing his wife away._

_"Hey! What are you doing?! THAT'S MY WIFE!" he bellowed. The man took the silenced gun away from the woman's head for a brief moment and fired two shots, killing him instantly. The sandy-haired man crumpled to the ground and did not move again._

_When the gun was moved away from the woman's head, she struggled to get free and managed to do so, putting up a violent fight against the rapists. At one point she kneeled the man holding her in the groin and he grunted, bowling over._

_"Let 'er go, man! She'll put up too much of a fight, it's no fun that way," said one of the two men._

_"I thought that was half the fun, the resistance!" growled the other._

_"We can find another one, now come on!" urged the first man._

_"Fine. What do we do with her?"_

_"Kill 'er, so we don't get caught," he suggested._

_"My pleasure, bitch," he cackled and shot at her retreating back for she had hurried to see if her baby was all right._

_She fell to the ground like her husband, but was made of stronger stuff and continued crawling towards her daughter, who was bawling her lungs out because the bad men were hurting her parents. Her father had just fallen to the ground and was not moving, and that scared the little dark-haired imp. Her mother was inching towards her child, hand reaching out to touch her._

_The rapists fired off another shot and she slumped to the ground, her life bleeding out onto the street. Her hand fell short of the stroller and she looked right at her daughter. She opened her mouth to say something. "Darling, I—"_

_Another shot finally killed her with her last words dying on her tongue and the child never knew what she was about to say. The men approached the stroller and the one who'd grabbed the brown-haired woman pointed a gun at her and cocked it. His companion stopped him._

_"You wouldn't kill a baby!" he hissed._

_"What now, you developing a conscience?"_

_"Just leave her be! Come on, the neighbors will notice the brat's crying. Let's __**go!"**__ They fled then._

I'm jerked back to reality painfully, tears falling down my face and a sudden chill coming across me. My mother's hazel eyes, lifeless and glassy, were the last things I saw before the police took me away. I barely notice Loki smirking down at me and escaping. I huddle against the wall, tears etching tracks down my cheeks. That's how the others find me minutes later.

"Ms. Nicholls," says Steve. He wordlessly puts an arm around me and helps me up. For once, my face is not an inscrutable mask, but instead has a haunted look.

Back on the bridge, with everyone else—excluding Thor and Banner—sitting at the round glass table, Director Fury demands, "Agent Nicholls, _what_, may I ask, possessed you to just sit there and let Loki escape?"

My head snaps up and I snarl, "Well, let's see. He used his own mind powers to make me relive my worst memories. I watched my parents die all over again as he escaped. It was the worst thing I'd ever had to see, especially as a baby, and I relived it. _**So...sue...me!"**_ I shoot him my worst glare, the one Loki used to be afraid of.

Fury looks back at me then says, "Very well." Then he leaves.

There's a pause before Stark says, "Where's Barton?"

"The infirmary," answers Steve and we all go.

"What happened to you?" is the first question I ask when we see him lying on a bed with restraints wrapped around his waist, wrists, and ankles.

"That blond guy swung one at my head. You sure he's not on steroids?" he grunts as he tries to sit up.

"He's not. He's just a god." I remove his restraints.

"Thanks." He rubs his wrists then looks around at us all, surveying us.

"So where's Loki now?" asks Steve.

"Uhh..." He appears to be racking his brains. "I asked him once, hold on." Then he snaps his fingers. "Stark Tower! Loki's gonna open a portal to allow his alien army to come attack New York and then we're all doomed." He says this all very quickly.

"You okay to fight?" I ask.

"Never been better." He has a determined look in his eye that tells me that if we leave him on the Helicarrier, he'd probably find a way out anyway and go murder the man who fiddled with his mind.

"If you're sure."

We head out of the place with Steve calling over his shoulder, "Suit up!"

Barton's eyebrows are raised, but he doesn't question it. Five minutes later, we're all in one of the SHIELD jets.

"Come on, come on!" Natasha is muttering to herself while getting all of the engines online. We take off from the Helicarrier and fly as fast as we can to Stark Tower.

Natasha drops Steve and I off at the top of Stark Tower. I land as the ebony mare and charge Dr. Erik Selvig. I knock him onto his back and demand, _Turn it off right damn now or so help me, the weather forecast today will be drizzling Selvig._

Selvig holds up his hands. "Loki's scepter!" he whimpers.

I stare at him.

"Loki's scepter can close the portal. It's the only thing."

I stop snarling in his face to consider this. I know I'm the only one yet who has any hope of persuading him aside from his family but Odin is in Asgard and Thor is God knows where. I let go of Selvig and take off looking for my ex-boyfriend.

I project my mind to look for him. I weave through the thoughts of the New Yorkers on the ground, and end up blocked. He must've known I would try and look for him this way. My body morphs into the form of a golden eagle and I take off in a blur of golden feathers. I soar through the sky and moments later, my sharp eyes zero in on the god. I close my wings and plummet, beak forward, down towards Loki.

He looks up and I collide into him but a moment later, I go right through him and pull up short. Of course it was a trap. His real body appears to my right and I attack him. I turn into the horse as I have more physical strength that way and trample his chest with my golden hooves. His armor protects him from being killed but he's injured anyway. He points his scepter at me in a threat.

"Get away from me! You demonspawn bitch! Why are you always ruining my pla—"

I quickly snatch at his scepter and catch it between my jaws. I take off immediately, running hell for leather away from the god.

He screams something and a moment later, a ropy something suddenly constricts my throat, forcing me to gag and drop the scepter. I paw frantically at the air and Loki snatches up his weapon again. My brain is struggling for oxygen so badly that my body becomes my usual form once more, as per usual when my mind is overly stressed. The rope shrinks to the size of my human neck. Loki traces the tip of his scepter against my cheek, drawing blood.

"You never learn, do you?" he purrs seductively. I shiver from his voice and the scepter-point.

I choose not to answer. Not that I can, for the rope is constricting my airway. I slam the full force of my mind against Loki, who's holding the rope. His mind is blocked, but his shields buckle nevertheless. It is enough for him to be distracted and loosen his hold on the rope. I quickly twist free and grab Loki. I am much less heavy than he is but I manage to take his scepter away. I blast him with his own weapon, knocking him down. I run for my life with the thing, taking out some of the alien army as I pass them. Twice I save my friends' lives.

I fly up to Stark Tower with the scepter clutched tightly in my talons. I transform back and land lightly. I position the scepter at the cube and say into my earpiece, "I have Loki's scepter. Permission to close the portal?"

_No,_ begs a familiar voice. I am startled for a brief moment. I have never seen the god of mischief humbled so. Since when does Loki, Son of both Odin the All-father and King Laufey of the Jotuns, beg?

_Why?_

_I struck a bargain with them. Should they live and I fail to give them the Tesseract, I will die a most painful death._

_And well you deserve it, _I tell him coldly. _Look around you._

_I know. I know full well that I deserve it, but I also know you. You will have compassion. And you cannot bear to condemn me to such an ill fate._ His quiet mind-voice makes me reconsider this. He is right, though I would never admit it to him.

Just as Loki finishes his argument, Stark cuts in from the earpiece. "Wait. Don't. Nuclear missile coming in. And I know just where to put it. I just hope my battery holds."

"Stark," I warn. "You might kill yourself."

"Captain, what was your definition of a hero again?" he asks. I sigh at the rhetorical question.

"You're a brave man, Stark," says Steve.

"I try."

I snort. "You'd better come back, Tony Stark, or I'll drag you from the Underworld kicking and screaming if I have to."

"Why not Valhalla?"

"You're not enough of a saint," says Barton.

"Damn right I'm not a saint. I'm a genius, billionaire, playboy, and philanthropist all mashed into one. Like bacon-mashed potatoes."

There are a few moments of silence before I both see and hear Stark at the same time. The spark that is him glows brighter and larger in the sky as he approaches, pushing the nuke upwards into the dark portal opening. "I'm here. Wish me luck, folks." He says this in the voice of an announcer from the fifties. I suddenly wonder if this is the last joke he'll ever make.

"That's not accurate," says Steve softly but he is not really correcting.

I watch him disappear into the hole. Moments later, an extremely bright flash of sudden light explodes in the dark distance. I grip the scepter tightly, hoping against hope that our favorite narcissist comes back. I don't even notice the aliens on the ground crumpling, their power source gone.

Steve's voice brings me back. "There's not enough time. Close it."

I want so much to disobey his order, but the nuclear missile is highly radioactive. I reluctantly thrust the scepter's point into the contraption holding the Tesseract and watch with impending doom as the portal's shining blue edges start to shrink, with no red and gold man-shaped thing falling back to Earth.

* * *

**A/N: **To all of my faithful readers, I am so incredibly sorry to keep you guys waiting. Honestly. I was so busy with other things and never found the time to write the next chapter. Hope you'll forgive me :P

I've left you all with a cliffhanger because they are just so much fun to write. Should Tony Stark live or not? Tell me in a review!

By the way, Valhalla is a place in Norse mythology where people who've died in combat go.

I will try not to leave you for months at a time again. I will try. (No guarantee that I will succeed, however.)


	13. If the God Was One of Us

**Chapter 13**

**If the God Was One of Us**

**Loki's POV**

I sigh when I realize the Chituari are defeated, but that brief moment of relief is replaced immediately by the crushing weight of having to reap what I've sown. I jump in the nearest SHIELD aircraft and attempt to start it. Four tries later, it finally starts and I get out of there as fast as I can. I am reveling in my freedom when something lands in the aircraft behind me through the still-smoking hole in the roof.

It's the redheaded SHIELD spy. She raises an eyebrow and says, "You don't happen to be going anywhere, do you?" She pushes me aside and lands the aircraft. The others swarm me and lift me off the thing, but I'm no longer struggling. I see Allison off to the side bending over someone. The metal man, Mister Stark, is lying on the ground unmoving while Allison slaps his face to revive him. He doesn't move so she leans in. Her full lips are an inch away from his when I wrench myself away from the Captain's hold. I rush over to them to pull her away. She looks up at me, startled. Her blue eyes are questioning but I just stand there wordlessly, mouth opening and shutting.

"Come along, brother. I must bring you back to Asgard," says Thor from behind me as he grabs my shoulder. Allison watches as they take me away, a look of confusion in her eyes. She looks back to Mister Stark. She pulls her fist back and punches his face as hard as she can. He regains consciousness at this hit. She helps him up and they follow closely behind me.

"Where are you taking me now?" I ask tentatively.

"You are not in a position to be asking questions," says Barton. Thor pulls out a muzzle and pair of shackles, which they bind me with. The muzzle cuts painfully into my jaw, effectively silencing me. They load me onto a SHIELD aircraft which has just arrived. Allison sits down across from me with my scepter in her lap. The glowing blue light calls to me, but as I cannot reach it, I am forced to sit and watch her hold it for the rest of the trip.

When we arrive, I find myself back at the large aircraft carrier upon which I was imprisoned before. Fury leads the group with Thor and the green monster—who has returned to his human form—gripping either arm tightly. Troops of SHEILD guards surround us and march us to a room that I am unfamiliar with. It is a steel-filled room, with a cage in the middle of the room. There are wires connected to the thick bars of the cage. They shove me inside and do not bother to remove the shackles. They do, however, allow for the muzzle to be off. Fury shuts the door with a clang and presses a button on a control panel a little ways away. I hear locks snap tightly in place. Then, he pushes yet another button and immediately, the cage is alive with electricity. My enclosure is rather spacious, but the bars all carry a strong electric current that would fry me if I touched them.

Fury looks at me. "Here we are again. This will be your temporary prison until we can fix everyone up. And as you can tell, the cage will shock you in the worst way if you try to touch it. Oh, the floor is fine, but only for those ten square feet in the middle of the cage." He indicates the red paint on the floor of the cage that marks these ten square feet. "Cross the line, and your goose will be cooked. Literally. Let's hope this is one line you will not cross, unlike that other one you'd left behind so long ago."

"I see," is all I say.

He turns to the 'Avengers.' He tells them, "You each get shifts. Watch him like a hawk. The other guards will fill in when you take breaks. Understood?"

"Understood, sir," they all echo back at him.

Fury points at the redheaded woman and Mister Stark and says, "You two first. Go have a shower, snack, whatever you need. Be back in an hour. When you come back, another pair will go."

They leave quickly. I am left with Allison, Thor, the Captain, Barton, and the other man whom I don't know. I sit down carefully in my ten square feet and sigh. A few minutes later, I ask, "So who are you?" I am directing the question at the green monster-man.

"Doctor Bruce Banner."

"Bruce Banner. A doctor, I see. What do you specialize in?"

He frowns. "Why do you need to know?"

I mimic his frown. "Must I always have a motive?"

Barton snorts. "Right, because that's why you're here. You _don't_ have a motive."

"Well, I'm bored, does that count?"

"Bored little boys have a history of getting in trouble," cuts in Allison.

I bristle. "Am I just supposed to remain silent for the next few hours until all of you have finished your little fresh-ups?"

"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in court," says Thor in a serious tone. He chuckles at his little joke. The others turn to look at him. "What? I've heard that line so many times among you mortals. I must have heard that five times before we left New York."

"Well, it's true. Anything you say now can and will be used against you during your trial in Asgard," says Allison.

I gulp then remain silent. Soon, Mister Stark and the redhead return, wearing their normal clothes. And this time, even the redhead isn't wearing that tight black suit. She's wearing something that is more casual this time. Automatically, the Captain and Barton stand up to leave. I just sit there and avoid being electrocuted as they return in a long hour, followed by another seemingly endless sixty minutes during which time Allison and Banner refresh themselves. Thor goes alone and returns in less than thirty minutes. By now, my foot has fallen asleep. At one point, it brushes against the floor of the cage past the red lines very lightly. I receive a stinging shock that envelops my entire foot, even though it was only the toe of my boot. I pull my foot back and cradle it in my hands, trying not to let the Avengers see my tears of pain. The tip of my boot is smoking faintly and hissing. I gasp for a few moments then knot my legs and arms tightly together so that I do not get electrocuted again.

Finally, my brother returns with Fury and he approaches me. He turns off the electricity running throughout the metal cage. He beckons me toward the door and I cautiously advance, hoping that it is not a trick and that the electricity really is off. I gingerly place my foot on a spot past the red square and sigh in relief when I am not met with a searing pain. I continue to the door then Fury unlocks it and pulls me out. I am reluctant to move because I am dreading my punishment. Everyone else follows closely behind. We board yet another jet and it takes us back to New York, landing right in the middle of Central Park. Large groups of picture-taking and yelling people surround us. But a few SHIELD guards push them away.

"Ignore the paparazzi, Loki. You're going home. Thor, do you have the Tesseract?" says Fury.

My brother comes forward with the glowing blue energy source. Thor transports us all the way back home, where I am sure I will meet my death in a most grisly fashion. The familiar jolting feeling yanks us from Midgard and back to Asgard.

I feel a sort of aching feeling inside of me when I see my old home. Thor whistles and his horse comes galloping over. They greet each other in an almost sickly sweet way before Thor mounts her. Then he looks at me.

"Come," he says and I get on the horse behind him. The uneven galloping of the horse unsettles my stomach even more.

As we reenter the palace, everybody is staring at us. Or rather, staring at me. I have not been here in a long while and frankly, I don't think I will be receiving a very warm welcome. Sure enough, when we round the corner to the throne room, the room falls completely silent and the All-father stands quickly. He takes in every inch of my appearance. "Leave, please, all of you." The others clear the room, leaving me alone with my father and brother.

I am preparing myself for the disappointment and shouting sure to happen when I receive something much worse. Odin smiles, a smile that is all teeth and no warmth, and says, "Welcome home. _S__on_."

I gulp. "Father." Thor brings me to the foot of the steps in front of the All-father and releases me, retreating off to the side.

"Are you proud of yourself now?" he says. "You tried to take over Asgard, but you did not succeed. You then attempted to rule the mortals on Midgard, and failed yet again. Are you not _**DONE?!**_"

"You don't even know _why_ I did all this!"

"Oh, and why is that?" he sneers.

"I needed your love, Father, and you never gave me it! You always favored Thor, your glorified prince. You say you never loved me any different, but that's not true. I am the son of your enemy and you cannot _bear_ that, no matter if you raised me since I was an innocent child."

"But you are an innocent child no more!" he barks at me. "You are looking for excuses, and you _know_ I am not the reason you did anything."

"How do you know?!" I scream at him.

"The shapeshifter. She was the only one you listened to, and why? You loved her. And she loved you. She was the only one who saw past your bitter mask. And when you exiled her, you lost all you had, all your self-esteem and went on a rampage. Taking Asgard, manipulating the Jotuns, and massacring the humans."

I snarl like a wild animal. "What is your _point?_"

"I did not give you the throne because I knew Allison was enough, and that if you had such power you would misuse it. Allison would leave you and you would lose everything you ever cared about. I always wanted the best for you, Loki. But now you've gone too far. You are not fit to be Laufey's son, and you are not fit to be _**mine!**_"

"Father—" Thor interjects.

Odin ignores him. "You shall be stripped of your name, your titles, and your power! And you will never be able to speak a word of your predicament. If and only if you can prove to me that you are my son, you may return as you were."

I stare up at him in disbelief. "Wh…I…how?"

"That is for you to discover on your own. You have no sorcery to help you now. And, as you so crave recognition, you will no longer have the thing people remember you most by." Odin points his scepter. He strips me of everything and I immediately feel emotionally naked. When I open my eyes, I see that I am wearing only the simple clothes I have underneath my armor.

I finally feel the weight of having nothing. I am reduced to begging for the second time in a day. "Father, please…"

"Never refer to me as your father again," he says coldly then turns to a shocked Thor. "Son, the Tesseract."

"But…Father!"

"THE TESSERACT, BOY, **NOW!**" the All-father thunders.

Thor reluctantly hands him the glowing blue cube. Odin takes the Tesseract out of the container and holds it reverently in his hands for a moment. Then he turns back to me.

"You will live as a mortal, among the mortals, as you are not fit to live among the gods." He sends me back to Midgard. The last I see of my family is my brother. His eyes are filled with tears and he shoots me a look of regret and apologies. He will never forgive himself but will always forgive me.

I land on the side of a road, behind a tree. By now it is nightfall and I blunder about on the road, not knowing what to do anymore. I bite my hand to muffle my sobs. I do not have anything left except for a set of thin clothes. I shove my hands into my pockets and hunch my shoulders to protect myself from the chilly night air. I find a key in my pocket and a few small pieces of paper which I assume is mortal money. There is a label attached to the key. I flip the little white card over and read the words. It is an address.

I ask the nearest person where the street and building is, then he points at a tall building right behind me. He shakes his head as he leaves, muttering under his breath about "stupid tourists."

I go upstairs to the third floor, find the door labeled 3A, and unlock it with my key. I turn on a switch on the wall next to the door and find myself in what appears to be a human's house. There is a note on a nearby dining table, which is in a large space with a couch and odd black box mounted on a low cabinet.

_Enjoy your new apartment._

"Damn you, Odin," I growl under my breath. My new apartment, as it is called, is small and not at all up to my usual standards. But at least it is mostly clean. I explore the rooms and find a hall closet, bathroom, and bedroom. The bedroom has a bed that I immediately fall upon. It creaks but at least it is a bed. I draw the blanket over me and close my eyes, for there is nothing else to do but wait until daybreak in this living hell. I have to find a way to make money tomorrow and then try to discover redemption.

The last image that runs through my head before I fall asleep is a woman with heartbreaking blue eyes and soft brown hair.

* * *

**A/N: I know I haven't updated in a really long time and I have no excuse. Hope you all don't hate me for leaving FF for so long :(**

**The Bifröst is still broken so Odin has to use the Tesseract to exile Loki. Odin has also supplied him with some basic things for survival, as is custom. It's just like how a marooned person is left with a pistol with one shot left.**

**Reviews please, for both me and my lost Loki!**


	14. Midgard

**Chapter 14**

**Midgard**

**Loki's POV**

When I wake up the next morning, I panic for a brief moment because I've forgotten that I now live in a cramped apartment with odd human appliances. I rub the sleep out of my eyes then freeze.

Something's wrong. I run my fingers over my face again. I dash into the bathroom and stare at myself in the mirror. I scream at my reflection. I've truly lost my identity now. I am a little shorter than I used to be and slightly plumper. I have facial hair and short, curly brown locks.

What is wrong with me? I prod my face as if I can change it by molding it into a different shape. Odin's words suddenly come to me.

_You will no longer have the thing people remember you most by._

My hands clench into fists and I am about to slam them into the wall when I suddenly notice my surroundings. There is a small basin protruding from the wall with an accompanying knob and pipe, above which hangs the dirty mirror. Then, further along one side of the wall is a water-filled, larger basin with a tank and long string above it. Last is the largest basin with a papery curtain obscuring half of it from view. I frown at these mortal appliances and remember Allison once explaining her world to me. After a moment, I identify the largest basin as the sink, the medium-sized tank one as the shower, and the smallest as the toilet.

As soon as I finish washing my hands and face in the toilet—I quickly figure out that the knob can be twisted to make water stream out of the pipe—I head for the dining table and look around. Inside the little room filled with cooking apparatus, there is a tall white box with two doors. I open one, and on flickers a light that illuminates an empty sort of shelved storage space that emits a cold whiff of air. The second door leads me to the same thing, though it is far colder than the first space. I look around and there are a few more similar boxes, though lights do not automatically turn on and they are not cold. I know these are cabinets but the white box continues to baffle me. There is so sustenance here so I leave the apartment.

My first thought as I shut the door is _survival_. If I am to survive in the mortal world, without my identity or sorcery, I must learn to live as a human—as horrific of a thought that is. I head down the stairs and outside so I can start, though I drag my feet so as to delay this as much as possible. Out on the street, there are many people walking back and forth past the door, seemingly in a much bigger hurry than I am.

I begin wandering about, observing the humans that brush past me. I follow some to see where they are going, and to see if their destination may give me some clue as to what I should do now. Four times in a row I end up following them to identical bright yellow vehicles.

I find my way back to my own apartment again and spot a dark-haired woman coming out of it. I walk a beat behind her and she disappears into a door. Next to the door is a wall made of the same transparent material with letters upon it that spell out "DINER". I push open the door carefully and see a room smaller than my own bedroom—though, granted, my bedroom is rather large—with small tables and chairs scattered evenly about. The tables each have a pair of chairs opposite each other and the tables by the walls have couches rather than hard chairs.

A man sitting behind a large desk next to the door looks at me and says, "Well, what're you doing just standing there? You gonna sit down or not?"

I look at him and furrow my eyebrows together. "What?"

"Aren't you here to eat? Pick any table and sit, we're usually pretty empty at this hour." He gestures towards the many tables. I sit on a couch and in a few seconds a woman, different from the one I followed, approaches me.

"Here, let me know what you want when you decide," she says and hands me a sheet of some sort of thick paper with words printed on it. As she leaves, I scan the list. It seems to be a list of food choices. I do not recognize much so I call the woman back.

"What do you recommend?" I ask. I instantly realize that my voice is different. It sounds similar to that of the men in the Avengers.

She frowns. "How about I just get you the eggs and toast? With a cup of coffee?"

I give a noncommittal shrug. "Alright."

As soon as the food arrives, I begin to hungrily shovel it down my throat but halt abruptly when my senses come back to me and I realize how utterly disgusting it tastes. I gag and promptly spit the rubbery eggs out. I try some of the brown drink called coffee and find that it, albeit bitter, is not half bad. I moodily poke the food around my plate and begin thinking about what to do. I followed the woman with the black hair because I thought she might give me a place to start. Yet I still do not have an inkling of my next step.

My head jerks upwards when it comes to me—my brother. Thor was tossed out of Asgard and onto this strange mortal realm, just like I am now, and he had to prove himself worthy to retrieve his hammer. I think back to the events of a year past. The mental images fly by and then I am back on my throne at home, watching over the events transpiring in the mortal realm.

_"Brother, whatever I have done to wrong you, whatever I have done to lead you to do this, I am truly sorry! But these people are innocent. Taking their lives will gain you nothing. So take mine and end this."_

I ignore the sting of Thor's statement that jerks my head in pain and focus on the last bit. He redeemed himself by giving up his life in the stead of mortals. I smirk to myself and wait for something to happen, my usual self back in full force under the pretense that I'd regain my powers.

The eggs on my plate become increasingly tattered as I stab them with my fork. Nothing in particular is happening. So far only two other people have come into this "diner" and both left fairly quickly.

It has become so uneventful that whenever somebody speaks, I look up in interest. Now the dark-skinned man behind the desk at the door calls across the room, "Oy, Jade! You left your keys at the diner last night. I kept them in the cashier for you. Heads up!"

The man throws the object through the air and the sharp thing that glints in the light looks dangerous. It is rather sharp and could injure the woman waiting to catch it. In one swift movement, I dash in front of her and throw my arms out, allowing a smile to make its way onto my face now that I've found a relatively life-threatening situation to put myself in. The object strikes my forehead and falls to the ground with a clatter.

I wince and put a hand to my forehead. The skin has been cut, but I am not bleeding profusely like I previously thought I would. I tentatively attempt to heal it but no light emerges from my fingertips to reverse the damage to my frail and still-human skin. I screw my eyes shut and curse roundly in my head.

Someone attempts to brush past me and I turn around. The dark-haired woman looks at me with slight irritation in her eyes, raising her eyebrows at me. "Excuse me."

"Uh," I say awkwardly.

"C'mon, step it up. I don't know what that was, but I gotta take my keys and get back to work."

"Work? What?"

"I'm a waitress here. At this diner. Best-tasting shit hamburgers you'll find in Brooklyn."

I stare for one long moment. "I did not understand a word you just said," I finally say.

She frowns at me. "Where you from? You're definitely not from around, yet your appearance—" she waves a ringed hand at my clothing which I've tried fruitlessly to make presentable "—belongs here."

I narrow my eyes and my body tenses. "What do you mean?"

"Calm your ass down, I'm just saying you don't exactly look rich."

"Oh." She's right, I look like a pathetic mortal. "I _am_ not from here. I'm not used to these…er…toilets and things."

She laughs. "So, what, you're a country boy? You crap behind bushes?" she asks, crossing her arms.

"Sure," I say uncertainly. Better to play along.

"Right." She pauses before continuing, "Why aren't you getting to work? Won't you be late?"

"I haven't got a job," I say and hold my head up higher. "I've never had one before, nor have I needed one."

She slowly nods. "Mhm. Well. My boss just fired the other waitress and we're looking for a replacement. You got any skills?" she asks me.

"What would I have to do?"

"Don't you have waiters where you come from? You know…we take people's orders at restaurants and cart dishes around…ring a bell?"

"Oh, so one of those lowly servants."

She gives me an offended look. "'Lowly servant'? What are you, royalty?"

I open my mouth to explain that yes, I am a Prince of Asgard, but I cannot seem to wrap my tongue around the words and the only sound that leaves my mouth is a sort of warped gurgle. My mouth works furiously to bite back the bitter retort I'd like to make in the direction of the sky, of Asgard, and I spit out, "No."

"Thought not. So, you know how to take orders? Can you clear tables? Can you carry more than one dish at a time?"

These are all things I used to have servants for. "Take orders? I'm usually the one who gives them. Clear tables and carry dishes? I had people to do that for me."

"Your attitude isn't getting you anywhere. I don't care if you were some Prince of Nowhereville, you're in Brooklyn now. If you don't want a job, fine, asshole." She rolls her eyes and agitatedly pushes past me.

I hesitate for a moment then dash after her. I put a hand on her shoulder, making her turn about abruptly. She clears her throat, smoothes out the front of her uniform, and says, "Whaddya want?"

It takes me a moment to swallow my pride. For the time being. "I need a job. I'm new to this country and I have to survive."

"Fine. Come with me." Then she points at me. "But I don't want to see any more of your snooty-ass ways starting now. You're a waiter in a diner. A broke-ass waiter. Start acting like it." She beckons with her finger and I follow her, my disappointment at my failed plan melting away. Hope rises in its place.

* * *

**A/N: **I know, I know, I hate me too for not updating for months. Please enjoy this new chapter and drop those stones so we don't hurt anyone...there we go...

Might need an explanation for this one: Loki thinks he washes his hands in the "toilet", does his business in the "shower", and showers in the "sink" :D The cold white box is the refrigerator (fridge and freezer) and the other "boxes" are cabinets. The bright yellow vehicles are New York taxis.

The italicized text is from the _Thor_ movie, Thor's line belongs to the writers Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, and Don Payne.

Review please and leave suggestions for how you'd like Loki's adventures as a mortal to play out!


End file.
